For the second consecutive year, the international signing period has been pushed back. Players that would’ve typically signed deals on July 2nd of this year will officially put ink to paper on January 15, 2022. The majority of players expected to sign during this period have had agreements with clubs for years already. This signing period provides an opportunity for the Chicago White Sox to add more talent to their evolving farm system.
During last year’s signing period, Marco Paddy and company went big game hunting so to speak by landing Cuban outfielder Yoelqui Cespedes and right handed pitcher Norge Vera for more than $3.5 million. Both prospects are top ten players in the system currently and Vera has gotten a lot of buzz recently. James Fegan of The Athletic wrote about Vera’s work with former Cuban star and White Sox’s legend Jose Contreras and joined a recent episode of the FutureSox podcast to discuss Vera’s strengths and prospect status. The 21-year-old has recently hit 100 mph with his fastball and he’s working on his secondary offerings.
The 6-4 185 pound right hander shows lots of promise and there’s plenty of projection remaining. Vera has a legitimate case to be the top overall prospect in the system and he’s the best pitching prospect currently. Vera pitched against inferior competition in the Dominican Summer League due to signing bonus issues keeping him from the states but he was very impressive nonetheless. In 19 innings pitched, the Cuban righty struck out 34 batters while walking just five and he gave up no runs. He’s advanced and should begin the 2022 minor league season at one of the A ball affiliates.
Cespedes is the 24-year-old half brother of former big league veteran Yoenis Cespedes. The 5-9 205 pounder got a late start to his season due to work Visa issues and a lingering shoulder issue that prevented him from playing in the outfield consistently. Cespedes has added a significant amount of muscle mass and he shows plus raw power with a 70-grade throwing arm.
The outfielder hit eight homers in 72 games with Winston-Salem and Birmingham. The right handed hitter posted a 127 wRC+ in High-A with a 108 wRC+ in his promotion to Double-A with the Barons. Cespedes struggled in the Arizona Fall League but he could earn himself a big league invite to spring training and he should return to Birmingham to start his second season stateside.
While Vera and Cespedes were the highlights of the signing class, 17-year-old Dominican third baseman Victor Quezada and teenage catcher Manuel Guariman of Venezuela both had solid showings in their debuts as well. Quezada signed for $525,000 and immediately hit six homers while posting a 120 wRC+. Guariman showed above average skills behind the dish while also posting a 116 wRC+. Both players should be ready to contribute in the Arizona Complex League when play begins in 2022.
The White Sox have started to bear some fruit in this marketplace and Paddy is a well respected leader that has successfully run the franchise’s operation for a decade now. 24-year-old Cuban infielder Yolbert Sanchez headlined their signing class in 2019 and he could make his big league debut in 2022. Sanchez hit .343/.369/.469 with a 132 wRC+ in Double-A while providing plus defense at multiple infield positions. Jose Rodriguez is another infielder that burst onto the scene this past season and he hit 14 homers across three minor league levels. Rodriguez posted a 141 wRC+ with the Dash in Winston-Salem prior to a season ending promotion to Double-A. He represented the organization in the Arizona Fall League as well.
Third basemen Wilfred Veras and shortstop Wilber Sanchez garnered positive reviews in their debuts in Arizona as well. Catcher Jefferson Mendoza could play in A ball in 2022 while outfielder Luis Mieses and Lenyn Sosa continued to improve with solid seasons in the system too. Cristian Mena is an 18-year-old righty that posted a 4.81 xFIP while averaging 11.54 K/9 in his professional debut with the squad in Arizona. Yoelvin Silven has risen through the ranks in a relief role as well and recent signee Adrian Gil is hoping to follow a similar path to Mena and others in 2022.
How The System Works
The White Sox are considered to be a large market club due to market size despite operating like a middle market club throughout the years. During the next period, they’ll be be afforded the opportunity to spend $5,348,100 on the international market similarly to the other clubs in their tier. Major League Baseball has allowed clubs to trade international bonus pool space in the past, but they aren’t allowing clubs to do so during the upcoming period.
Small market clubs that received Competitive Balance Round B selections in the 2021 amateur draft will be able to spend $6,431,000 this January. The six small revenue clubs who received Competitive Balance Round A picks can spend $5,899,600 and large market clubs will spend $5,348,100.
This is the second consecutive year under this system where the bonus pools won’t increase from the previous year. The Los Angeles Dodgers will forfeit $1 million in international bonus pool space for their addition of Trevor Bauer last offseason while the Jays will forfeit $500,000 due to the agreement with outfielder George Springer. The Dodgers will be able to spend $4,348,100 while Toronto will have $4,848,100 during this upcoming period. Bonuses of $10,000 or less are exempt from pools as are players at least 25 years old that have played six seasons in a professional league.
2021-2022 International Bonus Pools
$6,431,000
St. Louis Cardinals
Arizona Diamondbacks
Cleveland Indians
Baltimore Orioles
San Diego Padres
Pittsburgh Pirates
Colorado Rockies
Kansas City Royals
$5,899,600
Milwaukee Brewers
Cincinnati Reds
Miami Marlins
Tampa Bay Rays
Detroit Tigers
Minnesota Twins
$5,348,100
Los Angeles Angels
Houston Astros
Oakland Athletics
Atlanta Braves
Chicago Cubs
San Francisco Giants
Seattle Mariners
New York Mets
Washington Nationals
Philadelphia Phillies
Texas Rangers
Boston Red Sox
Chicago White Sox
New York Yankees
$4,848,100
Toronto Blue Jays
$4,348,100
Los Angeles Dodgers
This Year’s Class
Ben Badler of Baseball America and Jesse Sanchez of MLB Pipeline are known as the top guys in regards to reporting on the international market. Eric Longenhagen and Kevin Goldstein at Fangraphs update their big board as well and Kiley McDaniel of ESPN reports on the marketplace as well. At Baseball America, the writers have chosen to post a big board with scouting reports in order of expected bonus instead of projecting an actual ranking of players. At MLB Pipeline, Sanchez has ranked 50 players for the upcoming period.
Dominican shortstop Roderick Arias and Cuban outfielder Cristian Vaquero are the top players in the upcoming signing class. Arias is a 6-1 175 pounder that possesses plus defensive potential and power. He’s a switch hitter and will instantly become one of the very best prospects in the Yankees’ system. Vaquero is a dynamic center fielder with plus speed, a strong arm and good defensive instincts for his age and he projects for five tools. He’s a super athletic switch hitter but shows a smooth left-handed stroke. He’s expected to sign with the Washington Nationals. Both of these are expected to receive bonuses of $4 million or more.
The Cincinnati Reds are expected to sign Venezuelan shortstop Ricardo Cabrera and that signing should be north of $3 million as well. Cabrera may be the best hitter in the class. The right-handed hitter has developing power and should stay at the premium position. Another Venezuelan shortstop with an advanced approach at the plate is 5-10 155 pounder William Bergolla Jr. and he’s headed to the Philadelphia Phillies. Cuban teenager Dyan Jorge decided to wait until this upcoming signing period where he’ll land a $3 million agreement with the Colorado Rockies. Jorge is an excellent athlete that possesses plus-plus speed and shows solid instincts. Dominican righty Jarlin Susana is the top pitcher in the class and the 6-5 195 pounder will sign with the San Diego Padres.
Central Intelligence
The rest of the American League Central will be active on the market and multiple top 50 players should sign with division rivals. The Detroit Tigers are expected to land Venezuelan shortstop Javier Osorio who is a strong defender with an athletic body. He’s the #13 overall player in the class at MLB Pipeline. The Minnesota Twins will nab Puerto Rican outfielder Yasser Mercedes (17th) and shortstops Yilber Herrera (35th) and Bryan Acuna (39th) from the Dominican and Venezuela respectively. The Cleveland Guardians will sign 20th ranked player Jackson Chourio out of Venezuela. He’s a switch hitting center fielder and they’ll grab catcher Victor Izturiz as well. Colombian catcher Juan Olmos and Dominican outfielder Henry Ramos will ink deals with the Kansas City Royals.
Chicago White Sox Outlook
Cuban slugger Oscar Colas will finally become a member of the White Sox organization in early 2022. The 23-year-old is expected to sign for $2.7 million and that total is approximately half of the club’s total pool space. MLB Pipeline has ranked Colas as the 5th overall player in the signing class and Badler has the Cuban receiving the fifth highest bonus in the period.
Pipeline lists Colas at 6-1 210 pounds while Baseball America estimates the weight closer to 220. Regardless, recent instagram photos and videos clearly show that conditioning has been a priority during his workouts in the Dominican Republic. He was previously described as the “Cuban Ohtani” but that description is quite the exaggeration. Colas no longer pitches and what Shohei Ohtani has achieved is one of the greatest athletic performances ever. The Cuban does project to be a “middle of the order” hitter according to Sanchez however.
The scouting grades at MLB Pipeline have been released along with the big board and the publication has written favorable reviews in regards to the player. He was given 55 grades for his hit, run, arm and fielding tools and the carrying tool is a 60-grade power that was on full display in workouts for clubs this year. Colas is currently training in the Dominican Republic and opted not to play winter ball even though he was initially planning to do so.
In 2019, the outfielder hit .302/.350/.516 with 11 homers in the minor leagues for the Fukuoka Soft Bank Hawks in Japan. He also hit .305 with a .487 in three seasons in Cuba’s Serie Nacional. In 54 at-bats with the Soft Bank Hawks after a promotion and prior to defection, Colas slashed .289/.389/.533. Baseball America states that Colas possesses “big raw power from the left side” and they note that the power was evident in simulated games while working out for clubs. His body type, range and athleticism likely limits him to a corner regardless but the bat will drive his value. James Fegan of The Athletic wrote about Colas back in March and he wrote that the organization feels like the player has “All Star caliber physical tools across the board”.
The White Sox have signed a plethora of older Cuban players under the stewardship of Marco Paddy but one of the criticisms of their approach has been the lack of high upside teenagers being added to the organization consistently. That is about to change as Erick Hernandez might be the highest upside swing they’ve taken on a teenager since inking Fernando Tatis Jr. The 16-year-old Dominican outfielder hits and throws left-handed and he’s expected to receive a bonus of at least $1 million. The 6-0 175 pounder has drawn a pretty lofty comparison already in Nationals’ star Juan Soto. That isn’t to say that Hernandez is destined to be a perennial MVP candidate but he ranks similarly to Soto at the same age.
MLB Pipeline ranks the future White Sox prospect as the #28 overall player in the signing class. In terms of scouting grades, the publication lauds his hitting ability by giving a future 60-grade but they also project a 55-grade on his power as well. The run, arm and fielding tools were all given 50-grades by Sanchez. Hernandez already shows a very advanced approach at the plate and has shown the ability to make adjustments. He hits the ball to all fields and has shown the ability to handle both right and left-handed pitching. Hernandez is physically lean and athletic with lots of room to grow and add strength.
While his upside as a pure hitter is rare for a teenager, his makeup and positive attitude has been praised as well. He can play all three outfield positions and should remain in center field for now. The Dominican should possess the power potential to play in a corner if the move is necessary though. Hernandez trains with Jaime Ramos who is a member of Major League Baseball’s Trainer Partnership Program. Hernandez should immediately enter the organization’s top 30 prospect list.
The Unknown
The White Sox have committed more than half of their bonus pool to two players but they still have just under $2 million to spend on additional prospects. The money could essentially be spent already in the form of unknown agreements with traditional international signees from countries like Venezuela, Panama and the Dominican Republic. There have been no reported agreements for the club outside of Colas and Hernandez but we should know pretty soon regardless. There is another interesting prospect on the market however and the White Sox should always be considered a serious contender for players of this variety.
Cuban infielder Cesar Prieto has been declared a free agent by Major League Baseball and he could sign with a club immediately. The issue for him is that teams are out of money for the current period and the large majority of teams already have agreements in place for the prospects that will be signing in January as well. There just isn’t much money available for someone like Prieto who likely seeks more than $2 million on the market.
The 22-year-old second baseman defected from the Cuban National Team back in May when the team was attempting to qualify for the Olympics in Miami, Florida. The 5-8 170 pounder hits left-handed and throws from the right side and employs an extreme contact oriented approach at the plate. In 74 games with Cienfuegos in 2021, Prieto batted .403/.463/.579 with seven homers, seven triples and 21 doubles. He also posted a .919 OPS as a 20-year-old back in 2019. The infielder also hit .581 as a member of the Cuban National Team and he’s considered to be one of the best young players from the country currently.
It’s unknown right now whether Cesar Prieto will sign during the January international period. The Cuban infielder has worked out for the Houston Astros and they should have some money available in their pool. A source has indicated to FutureSox that the White Sox’s international scouting department has “some level of interest in Prieto” but the player may not be ready to commit for what the club has left despite their rich Cuban history.
There are already players committed for the next signing period following the upcoming one but it’s uncertain when that international period will actually begin. The league could permanently move it to January which could hinder older players that would need to wait another calendar year to sign. They could also move it back to July which would be helpful for clubs and players who have likely had agreements since the age of 14 any way.
The White Sox will sign two players on January 15 that possess significant upside. They also have around $1.7 million unaccounted for and that money will likely get spent. What they ultimately do could determine what they accomplish in future signing periods as well. Marco Paddy and his staff have done a solid job of late with low dollar signings and more will likely be on the horizon.
Photo credit: Clinton Cole/FutureSox
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