Kiley McDaniel of Fangraphs has an extensive update on the upcoming amateur international market, including some familiar and some new names. Be sure to give the piece a full read for details, but we’ll run through some of the key notes here:
- Word is that young Cuban righty Yadier Alvarez will wait until after July 2 to sign, even if he gets a waiver to do so sooner, in large part because of chatter suggesting that the Dodgers will be major players in the market at that time. Los Angeles is widely tabbed as the likeliest team to land Alvarez, with some believing that a $16MM deal is already in place.
- One interesting name to watch is shortstop Lucius Fox, who was born in the Bahamas, played high school ball in the states, and then moved back to his home country while asking MLB to declare him an international free agent. He would likely land over a million dollars and wait til July 2 to sign if, as expected, MLB grants his request. If not, McDaniel says Fox could be a top-50 selection in the draft.
- McDaniel also breaks down the latest on this year’s crop of more traditional July 2 prospects. Among those expected to crack the $4MM bonus barrier include Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (expected to sign with the Blue Jays), Jhailyn Ortiz (Phillies), and Wander Javier (Twins).
- There are a whole host of July 2 players discussed beyond that group, most all of whom are documented by video.
Wasn’t Lucius Fox the name of Morgan Freeman’s character in the dark knight trilogy?
He will probably wait and take the Dodgers’ 16MM signing bonus, but if he ended up being granted the ability to sign prior to the July 2nd date, you’d figure he and his agent would take the opportunity to attempt to raise the price on his services. I can see both the Yankees and Red Sox aiding in that process. Though I think it is rather unlikely he will get any more than that 16MM figure.
probably because no one’s going to want to spend more than $32MM on a signing bonus for a pitcher these days
I could see the Yankees making a panic move to help restore faith in fans after losing out on Moncada, and the Red Sox love to spend money on big-name, youthful talent. I’m sure they could rise the price a bit if he were to be available prior to July.
true..other than those two, I don’t think anyone even sniffs that amount
Is this years international crop better than the last year one?? As this most likely the last year of IFA so is it worth going over the limit for teams with small budget??
Does no one see a problem with a system that has a July 2 start date and yet everyone pretty much knows where these guys are going on April 15? What is the point in waiting? It doesn’t seem to help anyone.
I find the Lucious Fox subject interesting. He’s trying to get around the draft treatment. Clever handling by his agent.
It’s very similar to what Cardinals top prospect Alexander Reyes did. Reyes was born in NJ and played HS baseball there until he moved to the Dominican Republic before his senior year. He was forced to wait a year before being considered a free agent and signed as an 18 yo for $950K. That amount would have been the slot value for a mid 2nd round pick in the 2013 draft, but he was able to sign about 6 months earlier at the end of 2012.
Alvarez’s vow to sign after July 2 is just a negotiation ploy. You know he’s not going to turn down a boatload of money from the Yankees or Red Sox on June 30.
except MLB won’t allow him to sign before then. MLB giving him that waiver is doubtful at best.
He might turn down their boatload if the Dodgers have a slightly larger boat coming up a few days later.
Guess building weapons for Batman wasn’t profitable enough for Lucius Fox
No, your right, but getting signed by LAD is
Man, all I could think about in this post was Batman.
Lucius Fox was also Morgan Freeman’s character name in the Nolan Batman films. 🙂
I thought the angels could make a run at Alvarez or Vlad Jr.