According to John Manuel of Baseball America, the A’s have reached an agreement with 16 year-old Dominican righty Michel Inoa. He’ll receive a $4.25MM signing bonus, a record for an international amateur (excluding Cuban defectors). Manuel reports that the Yankees had a tentative deal in place for $2.7MM at one point but agent Adam Katz stepped in and raised the price.
This signing is akin to drafting a top high school player here in the states, only Inoa is younger. Oakland’s farm system has improved drastically in the last year or so.