International Free Agents Archives - Page 3 of 33

Saturday Links: Didi, Gleyber, Corbin, Lind, 154-Game Season

April 28, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

Later tonight the Yankees and Angels will continue their three-game series in Anaheim. West Coast night games stink. West Coast night games on a Saturday stink even more. Oh well. What can you do? Here are some links and notes to check out while you’re waiting for tonight’s game.

Still no contract talks with Didi

According to Jon Heyman, there have still been no contract extension talks between the Yankees and Didi Gregorius. Gregorius said he is open to a long-term deal earlier this month, though signing him now would complicate the luxury tax plan. This is something the Yankees will have to revisit in the offseason. “Didi wants to be a Yankee,” said one Yankees source to Heyman, for what it’s worth.

The luxury tax plan means an extension won’t happen during the season — because the regular season has started, signing Didi now would result in his 2018 salary being recalculated for luxury tax purposes, which means it’ll increase — and, frankly, this isn’t the best time to discuss an extension. Gregorius has had a monster start to the season and he has all the leverage. After season, once his numbers inevitably come back to Earth a bit, the Yankees will be in better position to negotiate a deal that is sensible for both sides.

Yankees pursued Gleyber as an amateur

Way back in the day the Yankees pursued Gleyber Torres as an international free agent out of Venezuela, reports Ken Rosenthal (subs. req’d), but he wound up signing with the Cubs. Chicago beat the Yankees to the punch, secured a commitment, and hid Torres at their complex until the signing period opened. Standard procedure in Latin America. Gleyber received a $1.7M bonus. The Yankees’ top signing that signing period was outfielder Leonardo Molina at $1.4M.

“Players you want in the draft who you don’t get, players you want internationally who you don’t get, it’s hard to let them go. They’re always in the back of your mind,” said Brian Cashman. The Yankees continued to have Gleyber on their radar after he started his pro career, and when it came time to talk Aroldis Chapman trade with the Cubs, Cashman “locked in” on Torres, according to Rosenthal. It took a little longer than they’d hoped, but the Yankees did eventually get their man.

Yankees have their eye on Corbin

Earlier this week Diamondbacks southpaw and impending free agent Patrick Corbin made some headlines with his effusive praise for the Yankees, and according to Heyman, the feeling is mutual. The Yankees have their eye on the southpaw leading up to free agency. The D’Backs are in the first place and figure to stay in the race all summer, so a trade deadline deal is presumably a non-option. The Corbin pursuit will have to wait for the winter.

“His fastball is back, his slider is better than ever and he’s an uber-athletic and competitive guy, which is the kind of guy to bet on,” said one scout to Heyman. The Yankees reportedly pursued Corbin this past offseason, so it’s no surprise they have their eye on him for free agency. Manny Machado and Bryce Harper are the big free agent names, understandably, but the Yankees will probably need pitching more than another bat. We’ll see what happens after the season. I suspect we’re in for many more Yankees/Corbin rumors in the coming weeks and months.

Lind’s contract details

The Yankees re-signed Adam Lind to a new minor league contract last week, and now we know the terms. According to Bob Nightengale, Lind will make $2M at the big league level, and he can opt-out of his deal on May 1st, June 1st, and July 1st if he’s not on the MLB roster. That first opt-out is only four days away. Lind has played a handful of games with High-A Tampa since signing. I imagine he’ll move up Triple-A Scranton soon.

Despite Greg Bird’s injury, first base has been a strength this season, mostly because Tyler Austin is hitting .290/.362/.629 (167 wRC+) in the early going. Couldn’t have asking him for more. Hopefully he keeps it up. Bird is on the rehab trail following ankle surgery and is expected back within a few weeks. It seems like Lind is first base insurance in case Bird suffers a setback or Austin gets hurt. Otherwise I’m not sure there’s a path to playing time. Replacing Neil Walker with a first base only guy is really going to limit the bench and roster flexibility.

MLB researched 154-game season

According to Jayson Stark (subs. req’d), MLB performed “extensive background research” on shortening the season to 154 games in advance of the most recent Collective Bargaining Agreement talks. The MLBPA didn’t push for a shorter season as hard as expected, however. “Basically, eight teams wouldn’t do it. They said, ‘We can’t make up all those lost gates or all the TV revenue. So you need to make us whole,'” said one MLB source to Stark.

Trimming the season from 162 games to 154 games would help the league avoid some nasty weather in April and November, but it would also mean each team loses four revenue-generating home games. I assume the Yankees and other big market clubs like the Dodgers, Cubs, and Red Sox are among the eight teams that objected to a shorter schedule. Four games is only 5% of the home schedule, but it does equal millions of dollars. Perhaps the solution is tweaking the revenue sharing formula and making the revenue up that way? Not sure. The MLBPA is expected to push hard for a return to a 154-game schedule in the future.

Yanks expected to sign Dominican outfielder and Cuban righty as international free agents

April 26, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

The 2018-19 international signing period doesn’t open until July 2nd, but already rumors connecting players to teams have surfaced. In reality, there are deals already in place. Verbal commitments are made months in advance, sometimes even years in advance. It’s against the rules but every team does it. It’s MLB’s open secret.

The Yankees have already been connected to Dominican catchers Antonio Gomez and Agustin Ramirez, and, according to MLB.com, the Yankees are also expected to sign Dominican outfielder Kevin Alcantara and Cuban righty Denny Larrondo. Alcantara, Gomez, and Larrondo are ranked as the 10th, 11th, and 29th best international prospects by MLB.com, respectively. Ramirez is unranked.

Here are pieces of MLB.com’s scouting reports on Alcantara and Larrondo:

Alcantara has above-average speed — he’s been clocked consistently in the 6.4-6.6 second range in the 60-yard timed run — and it shows up on both sides of the ball. Alcantara is also a gamer. He performs well at the plate in a live setting and projects to hit for more power in the future. Scouts also rave about his good bat speed and high contact ratio. He hits the ball hard and often tops the 100-mph mark in exit velocity.

…

Overall, Larrondo is an elite athlete with a projectable body and a quick arm. He has tight spin on his emerging curveball, his second-best pitch. The teenager is an aggressive strike-thrower with a working changeup that is expected to improve once he signs with a team and receives daily instruction in a club’s academy … The right-hander has touched 94 mph with his fastball and usually sits in the 91-to-92 mph range.

Ready to feel old? Alcantara and Larrondo were born in 2002. 2002! Alcantara turns 16 on July 12th, so he won’t be eligible to sign on July 2nd, the first day of the international signing period. He’ll have to wait another ten days for his 16th birthday before he can put pen to paper. Larrondo turns 16 next month. Gomez is the old man of the bunch. He turned 16 in November.

The Yankees have a $4,983,500 bonus pool for the 2018-19 signing period, though Jesse Sanchez says the Yankees are “expected to be aggressive in the upcoming signing period,” which could mean they’re planning to trade for more bonus money. Teams can trade for an additional 75% of their bonus pool. The Yankees can max their bonus pool out at $8,721,125 this year.

Last year the Yankees aggressively traded for bonus pool space in anticipation of pursuing Shohei Ohtani, and when that didn’t work out, they shifted gears and signed other players with that money. The Orioles are notoriously inactive internationally, so don’t be surprised if the Yankees make some bonus money deals with the O’s. Last year they sent fringe prospects Matt Wotherspoon and Yefry Ramirez to Baltimore for $1.75M.

The Yankees and Yusei Kikuchi’s impending free agency

April 20, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

The next big name Japanese pitcher is preparing to jump to MLB. Jon Heyman reports Seibu Lions left-hander Yusei Kikuchi, arguably the best pitcher in Japan in Year One post-Shohei Ohtani, is expected to be posted after the season, though of course nothing is set in stone. “He’s coming,” said one source to Heyman.

Kikuchi, 26, has allowed eight runs in three starts and 21 innings in the early going this season. Last year he threw 187.2 innings with a 1.97 ERA and a 217/49 K/BB, and from 2015-17, Kikuchi threw 463.2 innings with a 2.41 ERA and a very good 24.9% strikeout rate. His walk rate (9.1%) was a touch high. Unlike Ohtani, Kikuchi is a one-way player. He’s a pitcher only.

Obviously there’s a long way to go between now and the offseason, but whenever a highly regarded young pitcher is preparing to make the jump from Japan to MLB, he’s worth discussing. Let’s talk out the Yankees and the looming Kikuchi situation.

1. He’s already met with the Yankees once before. Back in 2009, Kikuchi was considering following in Junichi Tazawa’s footsteps, and signing with an MLB team right out of high school. He met with a few big league teams at the time, including the Yankees. Kikuchi ultimately decided to remain in Japan, but he does have a bit of a history with the Yankees. There’s some history here.

2. He’s not subject to the international bonus pools. Kikuchi is already 26, so he is free to sign a guaranteed Major League contract of any size. It’ll be a straight bidding war. No need to trade for bonus pool space or anything like that. The Yankees could flex their financial muscle and outbid everyone else. Kikuchi does have to be posted, and the posting rules changes last year. Here is the release fee structure:

Contract worth $25M or less: 20% of total contract value.
Contract worth $25M to $50M: $5M plus 17.5% of contract value over $25M.
Contract worth $50M or more: $9.375M plus 15% of contract value over $50M.

Got all that? Under the old posting system the player’s team in Japan set the release fee at whatever amount, up to a $20M maximum. Now, if Kikuchi were to sign a $100M contract, the release feel would be $16.875M. MLB keeps renegotiating the posting system and the NPB teams keep getting less.

3. Kikuchi’s stuff is legit. While he’s no Ohtani, Kikuchi is pretty impressive himself, with a mid-90s heater and three secondary pitchers that all grade out well. Dennis Lin (subs. req’d) has more:

(The) makings of a quality major-league starter are there. Kikuchi’s fastball is consistently in the mid-90s. His curveball, slider and splitter all rate as average or slightly better. “He is a good one,” one scout wrote in a text. “Has not been real durable, but stuff is solid.”

Injuries, specifically a series of shoulder issues, held Kikuchi back earlier in his career. He averaged 131 innings per season from 2012-16 — his high was 143 innings in 2016 — before staying healthy and throwing a career best 187.2 innings last year. A history of shoulder problems is scary, but Kikuchi hasn’t needed surgery, and he was healthy during his most recent season. Here’s some video:

4. The Yankees are going to need pitching. I mean, duh. Every team always needs pitching. The Yankees could certainly use some right now! Who knows what things will look like come the offseason — I’d be very surprised if the Yankees didn’t add a starter before the trade deadline — but chances are the Yankees will be in the market for a starter next winter. How about a 26-year-old southpaw with strikeout stuff?

The Yankees obviously aren’t opposed to spending big on a Japanese pitcher. They signed Kei Igawa (and got burned), they signed Masahiro Tanaka (has mostly worked out), and they were ready to make a major run at Ohtani before learning he wouldn’t even listed to their pitch. The Yankees scouted Tanaka and Ohtani a very long time before deciding to take the plunge, partly because they didn’t do enough homework with Igawa.

We haven’t heard Kikuchi connected to the Yankees or any team yet this year, though I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before we start hearing about scouting trips and all that. As good as he is, Kikuchi is not a generational talent like Ohtani, and he doesn’t offer the same sort of track record as Tanaka. That doesn’t mean the Yankees won’t or shouldn’t go after him. It just means Kikuchi is his own person. With the Yankees likely to be in the market for pitching, he’s someone we figure to hear quite a bit about in the coming weeks and months.

Yankees among smallest bonus pools for 2018 draft, 2018-19 international signing period

April 9, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

Now that we’re into April, the 30 big league teams are really starting to bear down and prepare for the upcoming amateur talent acquisition phase. The three-day first year player draft begins Monday, June 4th, and the international signing period opens Monday, July 2nd. Here are the Yankees’ bonus pool situations for the summer.

Draft Bonus Pool: $6,115,100

Greg Holland, the last unsigned qualified free agent, signed with the Cardinals two weeks ago, so the 2018 draft order is pretty much set, aside from any forthcoming Competitive Balance Lottery pick trades. The Yankees, who hold the 23rd overall pick, neither gained nor lost any draft picks through free agent compensation over the winter.

According to Jim Callis, the Yankees have a $6,115,100 bonus pool this year. The bonus pools increased 4.2% overall this year. Here are the individual draft slots by round:

First Round (23rd overall): $2,815,900
Second Round (61st overall): $1,086,900
Third Round (97th overall): $576,400
Fourth Round (127th overall): $430,400
Fifth Round (157th overall): $320,700
Sixth Round (187th overall): $247,600
Seventh Round (217th overall): $194,000
Eighth Round (247th overall): $159,800
Ninth Round (277th overall): $145,600
Tenth Round (307th overall): $137,800

Every dollar over $125,000 given to a player selected after the tenth round counts against the bonus pool. The penalties for exceeding the draft bonus pool are pretty harsh. There’s a tax and you have to forfeit a future draft pick(s). No team has exceeded their bonus pool since the system was implemented in 2012 and I see no reason to believe that will change this year.

The Yankees haven’t picked as late as 23rd overall since 2013, when they selected Eric Jagielo with the 26th overall selection. They didn’t have a first round pick in 2014, and from 2015-17 they picked either 16th or 18th. Here is MLB.com’s top 50 draft prospects, if you want to look over some players the Yankees could target. Our draft coverage will ramp up in the coming weeks.

International Bonus Pool: $4,983,500

Nowadays there is a hard cap on international spending — the Yankees greatly exceeded their bonus pool during the 2014-15 signing period, other teams followed suit, and MLB decided to put an end to it — and there are three bonus pool tiers tied to market size. The Yankees of course fall into the large market/small bonus pool tier, and thus have $4,983,500 to spend internationally this year, according to Ben Badler.

Teams are allowed to trade for additional international bonus pool space, which the Yankees did a bunch last year in anticipation of Shohei Ohtani’s free agency. When Ohtani declined to speak to the Yankees, they turned around and gave the money to other international free agents, like Raimfer Salinas and Antonio Cabello. Teams can trade for an additional 75% of their bonus pool and must do so in $250,000 increments. The Yankees can max their bonus pool out at $8,721,125 this year.

Already the Yankees have been connected to top Dominican catcher prospects Antonio Gomez and Agustin Ramirez, so that’s where some of that $4,983,500 is going. The Yankees aggressively traded for bonus pool money last year because of Ohtani. They could do the same this year, though these trades tend to happen on a case-by-case basis when it comes to Latin American prospects. Teams will have deals lined up before adding bonus pool money. They won’t trade for bonus money then look for ways to spend it. Last year was different because of Ohtani.

Badler: Yankees favored to sign two top Dominican catcher prospects

March 15, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

According to Ben Badler, the Yankees are the favorites to sign 16-year-old Dominican catching prospects Antonio Gomez and Agustin Ramirez when the 2018-19 international signing period opens July 2nd. Both players were among the standouts during MLB’s international showcase last month.

Here’s a bit of scouting info on Gomez and Ramirez from Badler:

(Gomez) demonstrated remarkable quickness and arm strength on his throws to second base, both in the workout and in games … Gomez did have some trouble in games with his receiving, but he has an elite combination of quick feet, a fast exchange and a plus-plus arm … He uses the whole field with gap power

(snip)

Ramirez, 16, packs a lot of strength into his compact swing, driving the ball to the fence in BP … Ramirez squared up fastballs consistently, though he did have some trouble on breaking pitches. Ramirez’s bat stood out more than his defense, where Ramirez has work to do to improve his receiving and throws to second.

The Yankees signed Venezuelan catching prospect Antonio Cabello to an undisclosed bonus back in December, though whatever the bonus is, it was big enough to eat up much of their $3.5M in Shohei Ohtani money. That’s why the Rangers were able to beat them out for Cuban outfielder Julio Pablo Martinez. Texas had bonus money and the Yankees didn’t. Gomez and Ramirez are 2018 international prospects and fall under a separate signing bonus pool.

Catcher is, by no small margin, the weakest position in the organization at the moment. Fortunately the Yankees have Gary Sanchez at the MLB level, so they won’t need a new big league backstop anytime soon, but the catcher prospect cupboard is pretty bare. Saul Torres, converted infielder Donny Sands, and soon-to-be 28-year-old Kyle Higashioka are the team’s top backstop prospects. Yikes.

Teams generally do not draft or sign players to fill organizational needs. The Yankees tend to hoard talent, regardless of position, then figure out how it fits later. That’s how they wound up with Sanchez and John Ryan Murphy sharing catching duties like three years straight in the minors. Gomez and Ramirez will help address an organizational weakness at catcher and that’s cool. But the Yankees aren’t signing them specifically because they’re catchers.

Saturday Links: Search for Pitching, Martinez, Giese, Daley

February 24, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

Boone, Cashman, and Tim Naehring. (Presswire)

The Yankees continue their Grapefruit League season this afternoon with a road game against the Pirates, but, sadly, it will not be televised. Tomorrow’s game will be televised, however, so that’s cool. Anyway, here are some links to check out on the first weekend with baseball in 2018.

Yankees still looking for pitching

Not surprisingly, Brian Cashman confirmed earlier this week that the Yankees remain in the market for pitching. They addressed their infield with the Brandon Drury trade — they did that without spending any finite luxury tax plan dollars — so the only item left on the offseason shopping list is pitching depth. Here’s what Cashman said, via Bryan Hoch:

“We are trying to attack places that are potential weaknesses or are weaknesses,” Cashman said. “I think our pitching side is pretty strong and obviously we want it to stay healthy, but we will evaluate the pitching available regardless. It’s been our stated goal to add a starter. There’s a reason we haven’t done it and it isn’t because we don’t have an interest.”

The Yankees still have $22M to spend under the luxury tax threshold, which is a nice chunk of change even when you remove the $10M they’re said to be setting aside for midseason additions. I feel like, with each passing day, it is more and more likely the Yankees will jump in to sign either Alex Cobb or Lance Lynn. It would cost two draft picks and $1M in international bonus money to sign either guy, but at some point it’ll make sense to jump in. Each day we’re inching closer to that point.

Martinez cleared to sign

Cuban outfielder Julio Pablo Martinez has been cleared to sign with MLB teams effective March 6th, reports Ben Badler. Martinez defected in November and Badler says the Yankees are among the favorites to sign him. The Rangers and Marlins are also in the mix. Here’s a quick little scouting report from Badler:

While Martinez’s first assignment will depend on several factors, his talent level is commensurate with a player in high Class A or Double-A. At around 5-foot-10, 180 pounds, Martinez has a good combination of power and speed from the left side. He batted .333/.469/.498 in 264 plate appearances during his final season in Cuba, with 52 walks, 30 strikeouts and 24 stolen bases in 29 attempts.

The Yankees have spent most of their $3.5M in leftover Shohei Ohtani money — most of that went to Raimfer Salinas and Antonio Cabello — and Badler says it’s possible the 21-year-old Martinez will wait until the 2018-19 international signing period begins on July 2nd to sign. The Rangers, for what it’s worth, traded for some international bonus money earlier this week, and Jesse Sanchez calls them the favorites to sign Martinez. Sounds like they’re going to make a run at him during the current signing period, while the Yankees (and Marlins) are cash-strapped.

Promotions for Giese, Daley

The Yankees have promoted assistant pro scouting director Dan Giese to pro scouting director, reports Brendan Kuty. Kevin Reese, the former pro scouting director, was promoted to senior director of player development back in November. He now oversees the farm system. Also, Matt Daley was promoted to assistant pro scouting director to replace Giese. Both Giese and Daley pitched briefly for the Yankees before joining the team as scouts. They’ve both gradually worked their way up the ladder.

A few weeks ago the Yankees hired former Marlins executive Marc DelPiano for a pro scouting role, and I thought maybe he’d replace Reese, but nope. It’s Giese. The Yankees tend to promote from within for front office jobs and that is exactly what happened here. I’m guessing DelPiano is fairly high up in the pro scouting chain of command given his resume though. The pro scouting department, which didn’t even exist until 2005, is tasked with keeping tabs on players in MLB and the minors. The department helped dig up Didi Gregorius and Chad Green, among many others.

Saturday Links: Pitch Clock, Martinez, Betances, Sanchez

January 20, 2018 by Mike Leave a Comment

Only four more Saturdays without baseball. Pretty cool. The Grapefruit League is about a month away. Anyway, here’s some news and notes on this baseball-less Saturday.

MLBPA paving the way for pitch clock

According to Ken Rosenthal, the MLBPA has formally rejected commissioner Rob Manfred’s latest pace-of-play proposal. That paves the way for MLB to implement rule changes unilaterally, which is expected to happen. By rule, MLB can only implement last year’s proposal, which includes a 20-second pitch clock at all times and a limit of one mound visit per inning by the manager, a coach, or another player. A second visit necessitates a pitching change.

The new proposal that was rejected included an 18-second pitch clock with the bases empty and no pitch clock with runners on. MLB and the MLBPA will meet again next week to continue talking, but at this point, Rosenthal says the players are upset and have drawn a line in the sand. They’re expected to reject any proposal. Rosenthal also says players and agents are frustrated with MLBPA chief Tony Clark given how many concessions the union has made recently. That was bound to happen, I guess.

I’ve said this before, but I am all for a pitch clock and a limit on mound visits. There is a 20-second pitch clock in the minors and it doesn’t hurt the product at all. It’s barely noticeable. As for mound visits, well those are getting to be out of control. It seems like every pitch in the late innings of a postseason game requires a pitcher-catcher conference. These measures are not the solution for all of baseball’s problems, but they’ll help reduce the downtime within a game, and that is a-okay with me.

Yankees held private workout for Martinez

Last Saturday the Yankees held a private workout in Tampa for Cuban outfielder Julio Pablo Martinez, reports Ben Badler. The Yankees were first connected to Martinez, who Badler says “has talent on par with a first-round pick,” a few weeks ago. The Marlins and Rangers are also interested in signing him. (The Marlins brought him in for a private workout last week.) Here is 7+ minutes of batting practice:

Martinez, 21, is still going through the process of establishing residency and getting unblocked by the Office of Foreign Assets Control, so he is not yet eligible to sign. Interestingly enough, Badler says the Yankees have “limited bonus pool space available for 2017-18,” indicating most of the $3.5M in leftover Shohei Ohtani money is gone. Raimfer Salinas and Antonio Cabello must’ve received nice bonuses. Because of the bonus pool situation, Badler says Martinez may wait until July 2nd to sign with the Yankees so he can tap into their 2018-19 bonus pool.

Quick Notes: Betances, Sanchez

I’ve got two quick offseason player notes to pass along, so I might as well dump them here. Some random winter news:

Dellin Betances told George King he is working on his mechanics and fastball command this winter, because duh. “Last year I went back and forth between mechanics. I just got to focus on one delivery and repeat that. Obviously, for me, being taller it’s harder for me to repeat. I have to trust what I do in the offseason and take it into the season,” he said.
Gary Sanchez worked with strength and conditioning director Matt Krause this winter and has dropped weight, reports King. A few weeks ago Brian Cashman mentioned the Yankees believe Sanchez bulked up too much last offseason, so he’s working to correct that, which might help him do a better job blocking pitches. We’ll see.

Also, Baseball America posted a Yankees prospect podcast last week, so check that out. Thirty-three minutes of prospecty goodness. The podcast is free for all. No subscription necessary.