Pirates Select Two Middle Infielders in the Second Round
Prep shortstop Aiden Ruiz and Auburn second baseman Chris Rembert go to the Pirates at 44th and 51st overall.
The Pittsburgh Pirates continued adding offense with their second round selections in the 2026 MLB Draft.
With the 44th overall pick, the Pirates drafted prep shortstop Aiden Ruiz. They took Auburn second baseman Chris Rembert with the 51st overall pick, which they received as compensation for last year’s unsigned 50th overall pick Angel Cervantes.
The Draft Pick Signing Tracker is updated over at Pirates Prospects with all of today’s moves.
44th Overall: Aiden Ruiz, SS
Ruiz was ranked:
32nd by MLB Pipeline
32nd by Baseball America
37th by FanGraphs
47th by ESPN
What stands out the most about Ruiz is his defense. FanGraphs had him as the second best fielder in the draft, with his 70 Future Value grade tied with first overall pick Roch Cholowsky. MLB Pipeline goes with a slightly more conservative 65 grade, which is still among the best in the class.
Aiden Ruiz Tools:
Hit (50 FG / 50 MLB)
Power (30 FG, 40 MLB)
Speed (60 FG, 55 MLB)
Field (70 FG, 65 MLB
Overall (45 FG, 50 MLB)
The breakdown of Ruiz’s tools is very similar to fifth overall pick Derek Curiel. Ruiz doesn’t grade for a lot of power, but grades well on the hit tool, with plus speed, and elite defense at a premium spot. In both cases, MLB had higher power grades than FanGraphs, which also led to higher overall upside grades.
FanGraphs rates Ruiz with a 40 grade for Pitch Selection and 60 for Bat Control. The pitch selection grades highlight the gap between the fielding and the offense. Ruiz projects to remain at shortstop long-term, and his development focus will be on the hitting side.
MLB Pipeline had this to say about Ruiz in their scouting reports:
An undersized switch-hitter who is listed at 5-foot-10 and 168 pounds, Ruiz is arguably the best defensive shortstop in the class. He’s an elite defender with a plus arm and range, great hands and outstanding footwork. Unlike with many young players at the premium position, Ruiz not only makes the spectacular, acrobatic plays, throwing on the run, he also slows the game down and makes the routine plays as well. It’s future Gold Glove-caliber defense.
An above-average runner whose instincts help him be a successful base-stealer, Ruiz’s bat is behind his glove. He makes a ton of contact with an idea of what he’s doing at the plate, excellent bat control and no fear, showing an ability to turn around premium velocity. But he’s done it without too much damage or impact to date, and showing some ability to drive the ball could certainly help the Vanderbilt recruit’s Draft stock.
The writeup confirms the FanGraphs grades, with notes about the bat control, and the lack of ability to drive the ball possibly indicating work to be done with pitch selection.
The Pirates shouldn’t have any issue luring Ruiz away from Vanderbilt, as they went with a first round pick who seems like he could save some money for the middle rounds.
51st Overall: Chris Rembert, 2B
Rembert was ranked:
47th by MLB Pipeline
55th by Baseball America
67th by ESPN
FanGraphs rated him the 8th best college hitter outside of their top 75
Rembert stands out for his hit tool, though there are disagreements as to how good of a hitter he could be. MLB Pipeline gives him plus potential, while FanGraphs grades him with below-average future value. Both project him for fringe-average power, and average-or-better grades for speed and defense.
Chris Rembert Tools:
Hit (40 FG / 60 MLB)
Power (45 FG, 45 MLB)
Speed (55 FG, 50 MLB)
Field (50 FG, 50 MLB
Overall (40 FG, 50 MLB)
The biggest difference between the two rankings is whether the hit tool can carry over to the big leagues. Even at the lower end of the projections, Rembert has a future value as a bench depth option. At the upper end, he could be an average starter.
Rembert hit .343/.399/.459 in 233 at-bats with Auburn as a sophomore, after hitting .344/.467/.555 as a freshman. His power dropped in his second season, going from ten homers to four.
This models Curiel’s path. The Pirates once again added a draft-eligible sophomore, getting a player a bit younger on the development curve than the traditional college player. More important, both Curiel and Rembert have hit exceptionally well since day one in college.
FanGraphs grades Rembert with 45 grades for Pitch Selection and Bat Control. This has been confirmed both with his low strikeout rates in college (14.7% in 2026, 13.8% in 2025) and with his scouting report from MLB Pipeline:
Rembert has some of the best bat speed in college baseball and an advanced approach, though his swing and patience have regressed a bit while he dealt with an ankle injury this spring. He manages the strike zone very well and focuses on drilling line drives from gap to gap. It’s unclear if he’ll provide more than 15 homers annually because he makes too much groundball contact, though he has the strength and bat speed to do more damage if he turns on more pitches and adds more loft to his compact right-handed stroke.
Rembert is an average runner with arm strength to match, which limits his usefulness on the bases and in the field. Some scouts once wondered if he’d wind up in left field, but he’s looking more comfortable at second base in college than he did at shortstop in high school. He has reliable hands and provides steady defense at the keystone.
Rembert could have the most offensive upside of the first three Pirates picks. He doesn’t play a premium defensive position, so his bat will be more important to his value than Curiel or Ruiz. He seems like a good candidate to maximize his hitting tools, with fielding and speed value that could keep him at second base.
The Pirates Prospects Draft Pick Signing Tracker is updated with both selections. Pirates Prospects will have live updates with every pick over the next two days. Draft analysis can be found here at Pittsburgh Baseball Live.
The Pirates have two more picks on day one, with the 80th and 108th overall selections…
-Tim Williams