Post by kinsm on Jan 26, 2014 1:59:31 GMT -5
The list of Cuban players to make a mark in the big leagues in the past few years includes names like Cincinnati's Aroldis Chapman, Texas outfielder Leonys Martin, current free agent Kendrys Morales, Miami's Adeiny Hechavarria and Jose Fernandez, Tampa Bay's Yunel Escobar, Baltimore outfielder Henry Urrutia, Detroit shortstop Jose Iglesias, Los Angeles' Yasiel Puig, Oakland's Yoenis Cespedes, and Chicago's Dayan Viciedo and Alexei Ramirez.
Fresh Faces
A long list of Cuban defectors who have recently been deemed eligible to sign or soon will, including:
Recently Signed:
23 year old OF Yasmani Tomas was arguably one of the top 10 or so players left in Cuba in terms of major league potential, and one of the top half dozen players who meet MLB’s 23-and-5 rules, the sweet spot for a signing unencumbered by the pools. Tomas signed a six year - $68.5MM contract with the Diamondbacks in late November.
27 year old 1B Jose Dariel Abreu defected from Cuba in August. After being cleared to sign, the Chicago White Sox gave the Cuban slugger a six-year, $68MM contract. Abreu posted video-game-like numbers in Cuba's Serie Nacional, and his power is very highly regarded.
26 year old OF Rusney Castillo He played for the Cuban national baseball team in the 2011 Baseball World Cup and 2011 Pan American Games. He defected from Cuba to pursue a Major League Baseball career in December 2013. He signed a seven-year, $72.5MM contract with the Red Sox in August.
27 year old IF Alexander Guerrero defected from Cuba in 2013 and obtained residency in Haiti. He began training in the Dominican Republic and on October 21, 2013 Guerrero reached an agreement with the Los Angeles Dodgers, that would be worth $28 million over 4 years. The deal included a $10 million signing bonus and allows him to become a free agent after his age 30 season. Guerrero has been one of Cuba’s best players the last few years, hitting .338/.408/.641 in 2009, .343/.414/.583 in 2010 and .310/.400/.599 in 2011. Between the three seasons, he delivered 60 homers in 886 at-bats.
23 year old RHP Raicel Iglesias' second attempt to defect in November was successful and shortly thereafter setup residency in Mexico. He was detained on his first attempt to defect after running out of food and water while hiding in the mountains. Iglesias is said by Ben Badler of Baseball America to possess a 92-95 mph fastball with a swing-and-miss breaking ball but questionable control. He played for Isla de la Juventud in the Cuban National Series, and played for the Cuban national baseball team, appearing in the 2013 World Baseball Classic and 2013 World Port Tournament. In June the Cincinnati Reds signed Iglesias for $30 million over 7 years.
23 year old SS Erisbel Barbaro Arruebarruena defected in November. Baseball America ranked Arruebarruena the No. 10 World Baseball Classic prospect not signed with an MLB team. Badler writes that the shortstop is a below-average runner but he makes up for it with a quick first step and solid instincts that give him good range. Scouts have called Arruebarruena a magician in the field, but he'll have to step things up at the plate. Arruebarruena held a showcase in early December. On February 12th, 2014, Arruebarruena signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers. An agreement that could pay him as much as $25 million through 5 years.
26 year old RHP Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez reportedly agreed to a six-year, $48MM contract with Philadelphia in July, however in August the team officially announced that they had signed him to a drastically reduced three-year, $12MM contract with a vesting option for a fourth season due to a possible elbow issue. Gonzalez's contract covers the 2014-16 seasons and also contains an undisclosed signing bonus and performance incentives. Gonzalez throws a mid-90s fastball, along with a curveball, splitter and changeup. He has not pitched much in the past two years after being suspended from the Cuban national team for trying to defect.
23 year old SS Aledmys Diaz defected from Cuba in 2012 while playing with the Cuban national baseball team in a tournament in the Netherlands. He was declared ineligible to sign with a Major League Baseball team until February 19, 2014, due to lying about his age. Díaz batted .282/.348/.363 and fielded .950 as Villa Clara's starting shortstop in 2009-2010. Diaz officially signed a 4 year, 8 mil $ contract with the Cardinals on March 8th.
27 year old RHP Dalier Hinojosa received clearance from the U.S. government and was granted free agency by MLB back in July. He finally signed a 4.25M$ minor league contract with Boston in October. Hinojosa throws in the low-to-mid 90s with a slider, curveball, two-seam fastball, and changeup.
23 year old OF Daniel Carbonell Carbonell was never on the Cuban national team and didn’t play much for his team in Cuba, Camaguey, until fellow Camgeury outfielders Dariel Alvarez (now with the Orioles) and Dayron Varona (who defected and has been training in the Dominican Republic) left the island. In his final season, 2012-13, Carbonell batted .298/.369/.449 in 223 plate appearances with 15 walks and 32 strikeouts, five home runs and nine stolen bases in 13 attempts.. He signed a $1.4MM major league contract with the Giants in June.
26 year old RHP Odrisamer Despaigne signed a 1M$ minor league deal with San Diego on May 2nd. He has four "average" offerings that he can deliver from a number of different arm slots, which gives him the ability to deceive hitters.
24 year old OF Dariel Alvarez signed a .8M$ minor league deal with Baltimore in July. Alvarez is capable of playing all three outfield positions and has drawn praise for a strong throwing arm. Alvarez played for Camaguey in the Cuban National Series.
28 year old C Yenier Bello signed a .4M$ minor league deal with a spring invite with the Atlanta Braves on March 1st. He batted .274 with 13 homers in Cuba's Serie Nacional in 2011 -- a league in which the regular season is just 90 games long.
24 year old LHP Misael Siverio defected in July 2013 as the Cuban national team was in Iowa for an exhibition series. During the 2013 season, Siverio made 20 starts for Villa Clara in the Cuban Serie Nacional. He struck out 81 batters and posted a 1.90 ERA. In November of 2014, Siverio signed a minor league contract with the Mariners, he received a $275K bonus and has a split contract that will pay him $508K in the Majors or $120K in the minors.
Free Agents:
21 year old secondbaseman Andy Ibanez has left Cuba in pursuit of a Major League contract, Baseball America’s Ben Badler reports. The 5’10”, 183-pound, right-handed hitting Ibanez is believed to have left Cuba sometime before September 21, which was the start of the Serie Nacional season and is currently in the Dominican Republic. Baseball America recently ranked Ibanez eighth on their list of the best prospects still in Cuba, with Badler writing that Ibanez “doesn’t have any premium tools or star upside, but his value lies in being steady in all phases while playing in the middle of the diamond.” He posted a .267/.377/.435 line over 280 PA last season and won a Gold Glove in his 2011-12 rookie year. Badler figures that Ibanez would start his Major League career at high-A or Double-A ball.
23 year old RHP Antonio Romero has been declared a free agent and has been unblocked by OFAC. He is currently working out in the Dominican Republic and is expected to star in a series of showcases.
25 year old OF Dayron Varona reportedly defected in November, no word yet on where he has or plans to setup permanent residency, it may be some time before he is eligible to sign with a MLB club. Last season Varona hit .373/.425/.533 in the Cuban Serie Nacional and finished among the league leaders in hits, total bases, average and slugging. After the 2013 World Baseball Classic, with Camagüey eliminated, he was reassigned to the Naranjas de Villa Clara and helped them to a title. He was named both an offensive All-Star and a Gold Glove winner.
19 year old IF Yoan Moncada, a switch-hitting infielder from the Cuban city of Cienfuegos, left the country legally in June of 2014 and is seeking residency in a country outside of the United States, the first step to becoming eligible for free agency, according to an industry source. Once Moncada establishes residency, the teenager must petition Major League Baseball for free agency and be unblocked by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) before he can come into a final agreement with a club.
-In addition 22 year old P Jorge Hernandez, 19 year old P Javier Gonzalez, 18 year old RHP Rogelio Armenteros, 25 year old 1B Jozzen Cuesta, 25 year old C Josue Franco, Eduardo Rives, and Orestes Solano are all expected to land on the free-agent market in the near future after recently defecting.
Fresh Faces
A long list of Cuban defectors who have recently been deemed eligible to sign or soon will, including:
Recently Signed:
23 year old OF Yasmani Tomas was arguably one of the top 10 or so players left in Cuba in terms of major league potential, and one of the top half dozen players who meet MLB’s 23-and-5 rules, the sweet spot for a signing unencumbered by the pools. Tomas signed a six year - $68.5MM contract with the Diamondbacks in late November.
27 year old 1B Jose Dariel Abreu defected from Cuba in August. After being cleared to sign, the Chicago White Sox gave the Cuban slugger a six-year, $68MM contract. Abreu posted video-game-like numbers in Cuba's Serie Nacional, and his power is very highly regarded.
26 year old OF Rusney Castillo He played for the Cuban national baseball team in the 2011 Baseball World Cup and 2011 Pan American Games. He defected from Cuba to pursue a Major League Baseball career in December 2013. He signed a seven-year, $72.5MM contract with the Red Sox in August.
27 year old IF Alexander Guerrero defected from Cuba in 2013 and obtained residency in Haiti. He began training in the Dominican Republic and on October 21, 2013 Guerrero reached an agreement with the Los Angeles Dodgers, that would be worth $28 million over 4 years. The deal included a $10 million signing bonus and allows him to become a free agent after his age 30 season. Guerrero has been one of Cuba’s best players the last few years, hitting .338/.408/.641 in 2009, .343/.414/.583 in 2010 and .310/.400/.599 in 2011. Between the three seasons, he delivered 60 homers in 886 at-bats.
23 year old RHP Raicel Iglesias' second attempt to defect in November was successful and shortly thereafter setup residency in Mexico. He was detained on his first attempt to defect after running out of food and water while hiding in the mountains. Iglesias is said by Ben Badler of Baseball America to possess a 92-95 mph fastball with a swing-and-miss breaking ball but questionable control. He played for Isla de la Juventud in the Cuban National Series, and played for the Cuban national baseball team, appearing in the 2013 World Baseball Classic and 2013 World Port Tournament. In June the Cincinnati Reds signed Iglesias for $30 million over 7 years.
23 year old SS Erisbel Barbaro Arruebarruena defected in November. Baseball America ranked Arruebarruena the No. 10 World Baseball Classic prospect not signed with an MLB team. Badler writes that the shortstop is a below-average runner but he makes up for it with a quick first step and solid instincts that give him good range. Scouts have called Arruebarruena a magician in the field, but he'll have to step things up at the plate. Arruebarruena held a showcase in early December. On February 12th, 2014, Arruebarruena signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers. An agreement that could pay him as much as $25 million through 5 years.
26 year old RHP Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez reportedly agreed to a six-year, $48MM contract with Philadelphia in July, however in August the team officially announced that they had signed him to a drastically reduced three-year, $12MM contract with a vesting option for a fourth season due to a possible elbow issue. Gonzalez's contract covers the 2014-16 seasons and also contains an undisclosed signing bonus and performance incentives. Gonzalez throws a mid-90s fastball, along with a curveball, splitter and changeup. He has not pitched much in the past two years after being suspended from the Cuban national team for trying to defect.
23 year old SS Aledmys Diaz defected from Cuba in 2012 while playing with the Cuban national baseball team in a tournament in the Netherlands. He was declared ineligible to sign with a Major League Baseball team until February 19, 2014, due to lying about his age. Díaz batted .282/.348/.363 and fielded .950 as Villa Clara's starting shortstop in 2009-2010. Diaz officially signed a 4 year, 8 mil $ contract with the Cardinals on March 8th.
27 year old RHP Dalier Hinojosa received clearance from the U.S. government and was granted free agency by MLB back in July. He finally signed a 4.25M$ minor league contract with Boston in October. Hinojosa throws in the low-to-mid 90s with a slider, curveball, two-seam fastball, and changeup.
23 year old OF Daniel Carbonell Carbonell was never on the Cuban national team and didn’t play much for his team in Cuba, Camaguey, until fellow Camgeury outfielders Dariel Alvarez (now with the Orioles) and Dayron Varona (who defected and has been training in the Dominican Republic) left the island. In his final season, 2012-13, Carbonell batted .298/.369/.449 in 223 plate appearances with 15 walks and 32 strikeouts, five home runs and nine stolen bases in 13 attempts.. He signed a $1.4MM major league contract with the Giants in June.
26 year old RHP Odrisamer Despaigne signed a 1M$ minor league deal with San Diego on May 2nd. He has four "average" offerings that he can deliver from a number of different arm slots, which gives him the ability to deceive hitters.
24 year old OF Dariel Alvarez signed a .8M$ minor league deal with Baltimore in July. Alvarez is capable of playing all three outfield positions and has drawn praise for a strong throwing arm. Alvarez played for Camaguey in the Cuban National Series.
28 year old C Yenier Bello signed a .4M$ minor league deal with a spring invite with the Atlanta Braves on March 1st. He batted .274 with 13 homers in Cuba's Serie Nacional in 2011 -- a league in which the regular season is just 90 games long.
24 year old LHP Misael Siverio defected in July 2013 as the Cuban national team was in Iowa for an exhibition series. During the 2013 season, Siverio made 20 starts for Villa Clara in the Cuban Serie Nacional. He struck out 81 batters and posted a 1.90 ERA. In November of 2014, Siverio signed a minor league contract with the Mariners, he received a $275K bonus and has a split contract that will pay him $508K in the Majors or $120K in the minors.
Free Agents:
21 year old secondbaseman Andy Ibanez has left Cuba in pursuit of a Major League contract, Baseball America’s Ben Badler reports. The 5’10”, 183-pound, right-handed hitting Ibanez is believed to have left Cuba sometime before September 21, which was the start of the Serie Nacional season and is currently in the Dominican Republic. Baseball America recently ranked Ibanez eighth on their list of the best prospects still in Cuba, with Badler writing that Ibanez “doesn’t have any premium tools or star upside, but his value lies in being steady in all phases while playing in the middle of the diamond.” He posted a .267/.377/.435 line over 280 PA last season and won a Gold Glove in his 2011-12 rookie year. Badler figures that Ibanez would start his Major League career at high-A or Double-A ball.
23 year old RHP Antonio Romero has been declared a free agent and has been unblocked by OFAC. He is currently working out in the Dominican Republic and is expected to star in a series of showcases.
25 year old OF Dayron Varona reportedly defected in November, no word yet on where he has or plans to setup permanent residency, it may be some time before he is eligible to sign with a MLB club. Last season Varona hit .373/.425/.533 in the Cuban Serie Nacional and finished among the league leaders in hits, total bases, average and slugging. After the 2013 World Baseball Classic, with Camagüey eliminated, he was reassigned to the Naranjas de Villa Clara and helped them to a title. He was named both an offensive All-Star and a Gold Glove winner.
19 year old IF Yoan Moncada, a switch-hitting infielder from the Cuban city of Cienfuegos, left the country legally in June of 2014 and is seeking residency in a country outside of the United States, the first step to becoming eligible for free agency, according to an industry source. Once Moncada establishes residency, the teenager must petition Major League Baseball for free agency and be unblocked by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) before he can come into a final agreement with a club.
-In addition 22 year old P Jorge Hernandez, 19 year old P Javier Gonzalez, 18 year old RHP Rogelio Armenteros, 25 year old 1B Jozzen Cuesta, 25 year old C Josue Franco, Eduardo Rives, and Orestes Solano are all expected to land on the free-agent market in the near future after recently defecting.
