Ivan De Jesus. He was part of the package Pittsburgh received in the Joel Hanrahan trade. He was previously traded to Boston from the Dodgers in the Adrian Gonzalez/Josh Beckett blockbuster deal..
The 26 year old former 2nd round pick of the Dodgers has raked at the plate his entire minor league career. He was named the Dodgers 2008 Minor League Player of the Year and owns a career .301 minor league batting average. Last year in LA, De Jesus was manager Don Mattingly's top bench option for a brief period of time. He was used as a pinch hitter on 16 occasions between May and June while batting .273.
For the most part, De Jesus hasn't experienced more than a few cups of coffee at the major league level. He was among the Pirates final cuts in Spring Training this year and Neal Huntington described him as "a versatile and reliable defender who can handle the bat."
So I ask...should Pittsburgh find a spot on the 25 man for him now? He's destroying AAA pitching this season with a whopping .332 BA supported by a respectable .865 OPS. He can play 2B or 3B and could be a decent PH option. For a Pirates team ranking 11th in the NL in hitting, De Jesus could be a nice addition to the bench.
Not to mention, it doesn't hurt to have a player sporting "Jesus" on the back of his jersey...