Baseball America (in the form of Ben Badler) is in the process of recapping all of the under-23 International Free Agency signings to date. Today he takes a look at the Cubs and the rest of the NL Central, covering everyone who received a signing bonus of at least $100k. The article looks to be ungated, though it can be difficult to tell …
Mets, Red Sox, Others Interested in Cuban Defector Ernesto Molinet
Ernesto Molinet is a 29 year-old first baseman who defected at some point after the 2013 Cuban National Series. Like Daniel Carbonell, Molinet's defection has mainly gone unnoticed in the press. Even Spanish-language accounts are difficult to find. Someone needs to direct his agent to Jesse Sanchez's twitter account. It's possible that Molinet "retired" early in Cuba and received permission to travel …
Dayron Varona Stats
Today's daily defector is Dayron Varona. Varona is a centerfielder from Camaguey. His departure from Cuba was originally reported in November, but that appears to have been inaccurate. Dayron did indeed attempt defection in mid-November, but failed and was suspended. Regardless, he left the country sometime between then and January, and is currently training in Miami. I can't find an accurate …
Rusney Castillo Stats, Scouting Report, and Video
Rusney Castillo is a centerfielder who defected from Cuba last December. He was suspended from international travel and National Series play in August, meaning that this was at least his second attempt at defection. Castillo is 5’9″, 185 pounds, and his game is more speed than power. The Dodgers and Orioles seem to be interested, though he has yet to …
Erisbel Arruebarruena Stats; Aledmys Diaz and Alexander Guerrero Comps
Cuban shortstop Erisbel Arruebarruena has reportedly agreed to terms with the Dodgers for five years and $25 million. Arruebarruena, who is in desperate need of a nickname (Babar? Belarus?), was reported to have defected in November, but may have escaped in late October. He has yet to be approved by the government. This could be an issue, as he established residency in Haiti, …
2014 IFA: Yankees Double Down, More Names Emerge
A surly Kiley McDaniel has followed up his original scoop about the Yankees' plans to to binge on this year's by putting some names out there: Dermis Garcia (3B, Dominican) is believed to have a deal for $3 million, Nelson Gomez (3B, Dominican) is also believed to have a deal for $3 million, Juan De Leon (CF, Dominican) is believed …
There Will Not Be an International Draft Until 2017 (At Least)
The articles I cited earlier today reference the Yankees' fear that an international draft will be instituted soon, and that it's driving their current desire to sign everyone. ESPN NY: The Yankees are apparently willing to take the financial plunge because of fears baseball will soon institute an international draft similar to its amateur domestic draft, an area in which the Yankees have …
2014 IFA: Yankees, Cubs, and #FreeDSLCubs2
2014 International Free Agency I’m still catching up on the latest developments in the international free agent market, and it turns out there’s a few to cover, including a big one: The Yankees have decided to go all out on this year’s class. Kylie McDaniel had the story back on December 30th, and ESPN New York belatedly followed. The Yankees …
Wladimir Galindo, Gleyber Torres, and Eloy Jimenez Updates
Wladimir Galindo, who I mentioned last season as a possible addition to the international signing class, has reportedly signed with the Cubs. The news was broken on his twitter account in December. Yes, I’m late, but the Cubs haven’t made any announcements yet, so I’m not too broken up about it. Reactions in the blogosphere have mostly expressedpuzzlement at the timing, but …
The Cubs’ IFA Mistake
Why we can be confident that the Cubs didn’t intend to exceed their pool space in 2013-14 International Free Agency.