The Athletics and Yankees have each agreed to terms with an international free agent, according to Ben Badler of Baseball America.
- The Athletics have agreed to terms with South Korean catching prospect Seong-Min Kim on a deal worth $510K, writes Badler. One scout told Baseball America that Kim, 17, has plus raw power as a right-handed hitter. Oakland was among the top five spenders in the international free-agent market last offseason with a budget of roughly $5MM, according to Badler. Jin-Young Kim of the Cubs was the only player from South Korea to sign with an MLB team in 2010.
- The Yankees have agreed to terms with Dominican right-handed pitcher Juan Carlos Paniagua, 20, for $1.1MM, according to Badler. Paniagua, who had previously been suspended by Major League Baseball for one year for age and identity fraud, is 6-foot-1, 170 pounds, Badler writes. His fastball sits in the mid-90s and can touch 98 mph, while scouts are mixed on his secondary pitches. The signing of a previously suspended player for fraud is not unprecedented in MLB nor for the Yankees, for the matter, as Badler notes. Carlos Martinez of the Cardinals and Jose Rafael DePaula of the Bombers are two such examples.
Yeah, the Yankees are no strangers to frauds and cheaters.
Its the Yankee way, after all.
So, how old was Paniagua originally claiming to be?
when he was 16 he claimed to be a fetus
Gotta love the first sentence of Juan Carlos Paniagua’s bio
awww look, someone else jealous their team doesnt have 27 titles…
Please man. I’m a Yankee fan and I’m sick and tired of that crap.
lol that Korean guy shares my name. for realz
Did you read about that South Korean prospect for the Dodgers, known for keeping the ball down in the strike zone, I Thro Lo.
“The signing of a previously suspended player for fraud is not unprecedented in MLB nor for the Yankees, for the matter, as Badler notes.”
As soon as I read this, I knew instantly. Time for a Yankee flame war.