Written by Greg Fertel
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30 June 2007
July 2nd, the day when international free agent signings are announced, is an exciting day for prospect watchers. It is on this day that we get to hear about 16 and 17 year-olds with sky-high ceilings (mostly from the D.R. and Venezuela) who could be the next Miguel Cabrera, Jose Reyes, or Felix Hernandez. Many of the games superstars were discovered and signed in this competitive and secretive process, although it is even more of a crapshoot than the draft. After all, despite how many questions there can be about 18-22 year-old Americans, they are playing in the US against known competition, they are much easier to scout, and they are more polished, and accustomed to the American game.
So why could teams spend millions on teenagers like Angel Villalona or
Jesus Montero (both 16 when signed, each commanded bonuses of around 2 million)? The simple answers: raw talent and desire. Many of these kids have been focused on baseball all their lives because they see it as their only chance to escape the poverty that many of them have grown up with. Also, they can come relatively cheap compared to similarly talented American players, although that is eventually going to change.
The Yankees, as usual, should be big players in the IFA market. They have seen the dividends it can pay, as evidenced by Mariano Rivera, Chien-Ming Wang and Melky Cabrera on the major league club, and José Tabata, Francisco Cervelli, and Prilys Cuello in the minors. Given the Yanks' surplus of pitching, it would not be surprising to see them focus their attention on position players, as they have done in previous years. Catcher Montero was the highlight of of a strong class last year, and so far, members of the 2005 and 2006 classes are doing well in the GCL (
Jairo Heredia '06, Zoilo Almonte '05 and Prilys Cuello '05 especially).
While not much is known about the top guys for this year, given the secretive nature of the scouting and negotiating, I will do my best to mention a few of the top guys. One thing to note about this year's class is that Chris Kline of Baseball America said that he doesn't think there are any 2 million dollar players in this class (like Villalona and Montero were last year), but there could be more guys who could get bonuses of over 1 million. The Yanks are reportedly planning on spending 4 million this year, which should get them some premium talents.
Kelvin DeLeon: DeLeon, a 16 year-old from the Dominican Republic, is one of the top outfielders available. I have not heard much about his skill-set, but he's supposed to be a good lefty hitter, who compares physically to Melky Cabrera. He is connected with the Yankees, and Kline considers him "likely to sign" with them. He could be a million+ guy according to Kline. Given the secretive nature of this process, that is as much of a guarantee as one is likely to hear, and I would be very surprised if DeLeon isn't a Yankee on Monday.
Julio Teheran: Teheran, a righty pitcher from Colombia, reportedly throws in the high 80's-low 90's with a plus changeup. He is one of the top pitchers available, and looks like he has good stuff for a guy so young. He is reportedly linked to the Braves, but we'll see what happens with him.
Carlos Flores: This Venezuelan lefty is another top pitcher in this class, although he has been tough to scout. I'm not sure who he's expected to go to at this point, but not many teams have gotten a chance to see him, and there may be some shady dealings going on.
José José: This Dominican outfielder is another intriguing prospect, in part because of his name. He is one of the most talented outfielders available. Reportedly, he had agreed to terms with a team a few months ago, but which team it is has not been announced. It might be the Red Sox, although the Yankees and Mets, among others, are also interested.
Other intriguing names out there are catcher Moises Montero, outfielder Anderson Pujols (Albert's cousin), and outfielder Itaniel Arias Guzman. Aside from DeLeon, which seems to be a likely signing, the Yankees will be big players and sign some top-notch talents, as the combination of George's checkbook and the Yankee prestige should be too much to ignore. When I find out official information about who is signed, I will let you know. But expect a lot of outfielders, and hopefully a few pitchers as well. This should be exciting.
