2008 International Free Agent Market

[CaliforniaRaisin]

In depth links on certain prospects:

 

Michel Ynoa stories: Baseball America and Diario Digital

 

Ezdra Abreu was prominently featured in a Parade magazine story on baseball and San Pedro de Marcorís from last summer - link to story.

 

A Baseball America blog entry on an international workout in Santiago, D.R.: link.

 

Big Name Potential July 2nd UDFAs:

 

Partial BA list

ESPN Deportes

Saber Scouting

 

Confirmed Cubs Signings:

 

SS Hak-Ju Lee, South Korea (age 17) - $725,000 bonus

RHP Su-Min Jung, South Korea (age 18) - $510,00 bonus

C/OF Jae-Hoon Ha, South Korea (age 18) - $225,000 bonus

LHP Cody Hams, Australia (age 18) - $150,000 bonus

OF Sean Williams, Australia (age 17) - unconfirmed $150,000 bonus

3B Joel Altagracia, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $140,000 bonus

RHP Adam Spencer, Australia (age 17) - $130,000 bonus

SS Carlos Henry, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $110,000 bonus

C Ricardo Parra, Venezuela (age 17)

 

Signed But Contract Was Voided Due to Failed Physical:

 

RHP Hsin-Hong Tsai, Taiwan (age 18) - $130,000 bonus

 

Other Signings:

 

Angels: RHP Pil-Joong Jang, South Korea (age 20) - $550,000 bonus

Angels: SS Henyerber Grance, Venezuela (age 16) - $170,000 bonus

Angels: RHP Daniel Hurtado, Venezuela (age 16)

Angels: OF Glenn Beltran, Dominican Republic (age 16)

A's: RHP Michel Ynoa, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $4.25 million bonus (largest non-Cuban IFA bonus ever)

A's: CF Robin Rosario, Dominican Republic (age 17) - $350,000 bonus - signed before July 2

A's: OF Jose Manuel Sayegh, Venezuela - $130,000 bonus

A's: RHP Elihoref Suniaga, Venezuela (age 16)

A's: LHP Junior Gonzalez, Venezuela

A's: SS Jensi Peralta, Venezuela - signed before July 2

Astros: 3B Darwin Rivera, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $320,000 bonus

Astros: RHP Chia-Jen Lo, Taiwan (age 22) - $250,000 bonus - signed in October

Astros: C Alfredo Gonzalez, Venezuela (age 16)

Astros: SS Alejandro de la Rosa, Dominican Republic (age 16)

Astros: RHP Fredrick Piburcio, Dominican Republic

Astros: 2B Fredwin Campusano, Dominican Republic

Astros: IF Max Ayarsa, Panama

Astros: 1B Mario Gonzalez, Panama

Astros: IF Andru Sierra, Colombia

Blue Jays: SS Gustavo Pierre, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $700,000 bonus

Blue Jays: C Carlos Perez, Dominican Republic - signed before July 2

Blue Jays: SS Garis Pena, Dominican Republic - $300,000 bonus - signed in November

Braves: C Christian Betancourt, Panama (age 17) - $600,00 bonus - signed before July 2

Braves: LHP Carlos Pérez, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $600,000 bonus

Braves: OF Fredy Gamboa, Columbia (age 16)

Braves: RHP Ernesto Silva, Panama (age 16) - $225,000 bonus

Braves: OF Hector Garcia, Columbia, OF (age 16)

Braves: RHP Eduardo Castillo, Dominican Republic (age 17)

Braves: RHP Amabale Nin, Dominican Republic (age 18)

Braves: RHP Wei-Cheng Huang, Taiwan (age 18) - $120,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Braves: C Meng-Hsiu Tsai, Taiwan (age 18) - $100,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Braves: SS Fernando De los Santos, Dominican Republic (age 18) - $100,000 bonus

Brewers: OF Luis Chirinos, Venezuela (age 16) - $90,000 bonus

Brewers: RHP Jamie King, Dominican Republic (age 19)

Brewers: RHP Jose Ramos, Dominican Republic (age 19)

Brewers: SS Andres Martinez, Domincan Republic - $225,000 bonus - signed in November

Brewers: CF Juan Berini, Dominican Republic - low 6-figure bouns - signed in November

Cardinals: 3B Roberto de la Cruz (a.k.a. Roberto Pina; age 16), Dominican Republic - $1.1 million bonus

Cardinals: RHP Santo Franco, Dominican Republic - $500,000 bonus - CONTRACT VOIDED, SUSPENDED 1 YEAR

Cardinals: SS Cesar Valera, Venezuela (age 16) - $500,000 bonus

Cardinals: RHP Dennis Montero, Dominican Republic (age 16)

Cardinals: C Gerwuins Velazco, Venezuela (age 16)

Cardinals: 3B Bernardo Villar, Dominican Republic (age 17) - $100,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Cardinals: LHP Keury Herrera, Dominican Republic - $100,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Cardinals: LHP Jose Weffer, Venezuela

Cardinals: SS Grabiel Hernandez, Dominican Republic

Cardinals: OF Jose Pena, Dominican Republic - $350,000 bonus - signed in December

Cardinals: OF Carlos Taveras, Dominican Republic - low 6-figure bonus - signed in November

Cubs: SS Hak-Ju Lee, South Korea (age 17) - $725,000 bonus

Cubs: RHP Jung-Soo Min, South Korea (age 18) - $510,000 bonus

Cubs: OF Jae-Hoon Ha, South Korea (age 18) - $225,000 bonus

Cubs: LHP Cody Hams, Australia (age 18) - $150,000 bonus

Cubs: OF Sean Williams, Australia (age 17) - ~ $150,000 bonus

Cubs: RHP Adam Spencer, Australia (age 17) - $130,000 bonus

Cubs: 3B Joel Altagracia, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $140,000 bonus

Cubs: SS Carlos Henry, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $110,000 bonus

Cubs: C Ricardo Parra, Venezuela (age 17)

Diamondbacks: OF Jose Jose, Dominican Republic - $160,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Diamondbacks: C Jae-Yoon Kim, South Korea - $150,000 bonus

Dodgers: RHP Jose Morillo, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $30,000 bonus

Giants: OF Rafael Rodriguez, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $2.55 million bonus (2nd largest non-Cuban IFA bonus ever)

Giants: RHP Ariel Hernandez, Dominican Republic (age 16)

Giants: OF Jose de la Cruz, Dominican Republic - $100,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Indians: C Alex Monsalve, Venezuela (age 16) - $715,000 bonus

Indians: SS Jose Ozoria, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $575,000 bonus

Indians: RHP Chen-Chang Lee, Taiwan (age 21) - $400,000 bonus

Indians: C Rolando Petit, Venezuela (age 18) - $295,000 - signed before July 2

Indians: 3B Giovanny Urshella, Colombia (age 16)

Indians: RHP Edward Pinales, Dominican Republic (suspended for 1 year by MLB for lying about his age)

Mariners: OF Julio Morban, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $1.1 million bonus

Mariners: RHP Francisco Valdivia, Nicaragua (age 16) - $726,000 bonus

Mariners: 3B Bertin Sanon, Dominican Republic - $180,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Mariners: 3B Jose Martinez, Dominican Republic (age 16)

Mariners: RHP Junior Nunez, Dominican Republic (age 16)

Mets: 3B Aderlin Rodriguez, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $600,000 bonus

Nationals: 3B Alexander Romero, Dominican Republic (age 18) - $20,000 bonus (signed before July 2)

Padres: RHP Adys Portillo, Venezuela (age 16) - $2 million bonus

Padres: OF Luis Domoromo, Venzuela (age 16) - $1.25 million bonus

Padres: SS Alvaro Aristy, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $1 million bonus

Padres: IF/OF Corey Adamson, Australia (age 16) - $500,000 bonus

Padres: RHP Elvin Tavarez, Dominican Republic (age 16)

Padres: RHP Eugenio Reyes, Dominican Republic - $200,000 bonus - signed in December

Padres: RHP Carlos Pimentel, Venezeula - low 6-figure bonus - signed in November

Padres: SS Jairo Gomez, Dominican Republic - low 6-figure bonus - signed in November

Padres: RHP Marlon Calveira, Guatemela

Phillies: 3B Yefri Pena, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $435,000 bonus

Phillies: OF Bernardo Solarte, Venezuela (age 16) - $130,000 bonus

Philles: SS Nerio Rios, Venezuela (age 16)

Phillies: SS Jonathan Villar, Dominican Republic (age 17) - signed before July 2

Pirates: OF Exicardo Cayones, Venezuela (age 16) - $400,000 bonus

Pirates: SS Jodaneli Carvajal, Dominican Republic (age 16)

Pirates: SS Jonathan Barios, Colombia (a.k.a. Yhonathan Barrios; age 16)

Pirates: RHP Dinesh Patel, India (age 20) - $20,000 bonus

Pirates: LHP Rinku Singh, India (age 20) - $20,000 bonus

Pirates: 2B Gift Ngoepe, South Africa (age 18)

Pirates: C Ramon Cabrera, Venezuela (age 18) - signed before July 2

Rangers: RHP Tae-Kyeong Ahn, South Korea (age 18) - $800,000 bonus

Rangers: OF Esdras Abreu, Dominican Republic (a.k.a. Ezdra Abreu; age 16) - $550,000 bonus

Rangers: LHP Edwin Escobar, Venezuela (age 16) - $350,000 bonus

Rangers: SS Odubel Herrera, Venezuela (age 16) - 160,000 bonus

Rangers: LHP Luis Parra, Dominican Republic (age 16)

Rangers: LHP Wilmer Batista, Dominican Republic

Rangers: OF Hector Martinez, Dominican Republic

Rangers: OF Francisco Lugo, Mexico

Rangers: OF Teodoro Martinez, Venezuela (age 16)

Rangers: SS Santiago Chirino, Venezuela

Rangers: 3B Carlos Torres, Venezuela - Miguel Cabrera's cousin

Rangers: 2B Luis Villegas, Venezuela

Rangers: 3B Carlos Oropesa, Venezuela

Rangers: C Oswaldo Pirela

Rays: SS Julian Morillo, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $210,000 bonus

Rays: SS Hector Guevara, Venezuela (age 16)

Rays: C Omar Narvaez, Venezuela (age 16)

Rays: RHP Wilmer Sabala, Venezuela (age 16)

Red Sox: RHP Junichi Tazawa, Japan (age 22) - $3 million major league contract

Red Sox: C Oscar Perez, Venezuela (age 16) - $712,500 bonus

Red Sox: IF Juan Ugas (a.k.a. Juan Vargas), Venezuela (age 16) - $300,000 bonus

Red Sox: C Ali Gonzalez, Venezuela

Red Sox: RHP Enrique Cuevas, Venezuela

Red Sox: RHP Ivan Marcano, Venezuela (age 16)

Red Sox: SS Jose Garcia, Dominican Republic (age 17) - $260,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Reds: OF Yorman Rodriguez, Venezuela (age 16) - $2.5 million (3rd largest non-Cuban IFA bonus ever)

Reds: OF Juan Duran, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $2 million bonus - signed before July 2

Reds: LHP Ismael Guillon, Venezuela (age 16)

Reds: SS Junior Arias, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $330,000 bonus

Reds: SS Anyelo Polanco, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $300,000 bonus

Reds: OF Frederman Lopez, Venezuela - $100,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Reds: RHP Carlos Tineo, Dominican Republic - $100,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Reds: RHP Ricardo Quintero, Venezuela - $100,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Reds: SS Andres Santoni, Venezuela - $100,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Rockies: RHP Jose Lauriano, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $190,000 bonus

Rockies: 3B Miguel De Leon, Dominican Republic - $250,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Rockies: RHP Jefri Hernandez, Dominican Republic - signed before July 2

Rockies: RHP Alving Mejias, Venezuela (age 16) - $250,000 bonus - signed in November

Rockies: OF Julian Yan, Dominican Republic - mid 6-figure bonus - signed in November

Royals: OF Jerico Blanco, Venezuela - $260,000 bonus

Royals: SS Pedro Nivar, Dominican Republic

Tigers: SS Javier Azcona, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $258,000 bonus

Tigers: LHP Fu-Te Ni, Taiwan (age 26) - $150,000 bonus

Tigers: OF Chao-Ting Tang, Taiwan (age 20) - $50,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Tigers: RHP Greg Morillo, Dominican Republic (age 16)

Tigers: C Gabriel Purroy, Venezuela (age 16)

Tigers: SS Luis Cortez, Venezuela (age 16)

Tigers: OF Steven Moya, Dominican Republic

Tigers: IF Dixon Machado, Venezuela

Twins: 3B Rory Rhodes, Australia (age 16) - $220,000 bonus

Twins: 1B In Kyun Kang, South Korea (age 19)

White Sox: 3B Dayan Viciedo, Cuba (age 19) - 4 year/$11 million major league contract

White Sox: RHP Tiago Calixto, Brazil (age 19) - $300,000 bonus - signed before July 2

Yankees: IF Gian Carlos Arias, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $950,000 bonus

Yankees: SS Anderson Félix, Dominican Republic - $800,000 bonus

Yankees: OF Ramón Flores, Venezuela (age 16) - $775,000 bonus

Yankees: C/3B Jackson Valera, Venezuela (age 16) - $675,000 bonus

Yankees: OF Yeicok Calderón, Dominican Republic (age 16) - $650,000 bonus

Yankees: OF Ericson Leonora, Venezuela (age 16)

Yankees: SS Abraham Ramos, Mexico (age 16)

Yankees: OF Kelvin Duran, Dominican Republic (age 17) - $300,000 - signed before July 2

 

The Giants had signed RHP Luis Angel Mateo, Dominican Republic (age 16) to a $650,000 bonus but his contract was voided after he failed his physical (bone chips). He does not need surgery and is being courted by multiple teams as a free agent.

 

Baseball America's International Signings Wrapup:

 

NL East

NL Central

NL West

AL East

AL Central

AL West

[Outshined_One]

2B Jhonatan Baez, 6 ft /150 lbs (!)

 

Holy crap! Somebody get that kid to a McDonald's!

[BigbadB]

2B Jhonatan Baez, 6 ft /150 lbs (!)

 

Holy crap! Somebody get that kid to a McDonald's!

 

What is that? Flyweight or Featherweight?

[UK1679666180]

I made that look fat when I was 15, stupid growth spurt.

[sethuel1]

In 9th grade I got called into the nurse's office after the beginning-of-school mini-physicals because my comparative height and weight flagged me as possibly having an eating disorder.

 

I've been drinking beer ever since.

[Guest]

Keep in mind that 1) he's 15 or 16 and 2) he could be malnourished.

[Outshined_One]

Keep in mind that 1) he's 15 or 16 and 2) he could be malnourished.

 

Kind of impressive to see a malnourished kid grow that tall, though. If there's a lack of calcium in his diet, Lord knows how tall he actually should be!

[RedFlash]

2B Jhonatan Baez, 6 ft /150 lbs (!)

 

Holy crap! Somebody get that kid to a McDonald's!

 

Nah....get him to hang out with Carlos Zambrano. He'll be up to 200 lbs before 2008 is over.

[Bear Cub]

Raison, any idea if the Pena boys are brothers and what positions they play?

[Guest]

Raison, any idea if the Pena boys are brothers and what positions they play?

 

No clue if they are siblings. Julio Peña is a RHP who was in the DSL last season, his first in the Cubs system. I didn't see Stanley Peña in my Cubs minor league register nor was there one anywhere in the Cubs system last season but there is a Lenny Peña (RHP too) who signed around the same time as Julio and is from the same town in the Dominican Republic. Maybe Stanley = Lenny?

[Guest]

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/international-affairs/2008/265719.html

 

Reds drop $2 million on a 16-year old OF Juan Duran - a kid many thought wasn't eligible to be signed till July. :shock: Great job on the Reds part discovering this kid was eligible, that's got to be embarrassing for the other 29 teams. Can't say I'm pleased the Cubs don't know the intricacies of signing 16-year old IFAs (assuming they would have been interested in Duran; at that price tag, they might not have been).

[Bear Cub]

After all the hype about all the progress the Cubs have made in the Asian market, it looks like all we have is Fukudome and an 18 yr old pitcher named Dae Eun Rhee.

[Guest]

After all the hype about all the progress the Cubs have made in the Asian market, it looks like all we have is Fukudome and an 18 yr old pitcher named Dae Eun Rhee.

 

To be fair, those are the two biggies and both have looked pretty good in Mesa so far.

 

I wonder what has happened to Hung-Wen Chen though. And if you want to count all Steve Wilson signings including Australia, Ryan Searle is still in the system and will be able to stay in the U.S. the whole summer this year.

[UK1679666180]

Definitely progress compared to looking back when Lee left and the drought that followed.

[Guest]

Cubs signed a 6'4" 18-year old Australian lefty by the name of Cody Hams who's described as rather raw with much more cricket experience. He's already reported to Fitch on a 3-month visa. In the story, you'll see a Kansas City scout say he throws a 145 km/h FB (91 mph) and that 13 teams were after him.

 

The article also guesses he got a signing bonus around $150,000 which would make him a pretty significant signing. I always question unconfirmed bonus reports, especially this one since it's a guesstimate based on Hams saying he got a bonus similar to a top-10 round amateur draftee. On the flip side, if he's got 13 teams after him, he probably did get a sizable bonus.

 

Hams is the second Australian the Cubs have signed in the past 2 years.

 

http://www.baseballvictoria.com.au/site/baseball/image/fullsize/56365.jpg

[TruffleShuffle]

his last name is hams? boy i hope he turns out good.

[craig]

Nice find, cal. Hope Hams turns into somebody. Sounds like an interesting development prospect.

[Guest]

Now it looks like Hams was actually the third Australian signed by the Cubs in the past 1.5 years, not the second after Searle.

 

The Cubs signed RHP Adam Spencer in February: link. The 17-year old received a $170,000 bonus; five other teams were after him. He won't play in the U.S. till spring training 2009.

 

Paul Weaver[/url]"]"We are excited about Adam becoming a member of the Chicago Cubs family. We are committed to finding and bringing the best players we can to the organization from all parts of the world. When I saw Adam pitch he showed a very sound delivery with a smooth effortless arm action, a competitive nature and a good feel for pitching. He is very determined and dedicated. I feel that he has a chance to fill out, mature and gain strength and with that become more consistent and develop into a solid Major League pitcher".

 

http://www.wininternational.com.au/signings/photos/adam1.jpghttp://www.wininternational.com.au/signings/photos/adam2.jpg

 

Oh, and there's this too:

 

HIGH School student Adam Spencer has just signed a US$170,000 baseball contract with the legendary Chicago Cubs.

 

Yes. Legendary.

[Outshined_One]

Aussie Aussie Aussie!

[UK1679666180]

I'm encouraged about their Pacific Rim activity over the off-season till now that they are recommitted to building up that area again.

[TruffleShuffle]

i'd like to see the cubs do more in terms of building a presence in latin america. good to see them mining the pacific rim, though.

[Guest]

With the news on Lee Hak-ju's signing, that brings the tally to three 6-figure bonus signings on the Pac Rim for Steve Wilson this year (granted none of the bonuses have been confirmed in the U.S.). And that's on top of the two 6-figure signings from last year (not counting Kosuke Fukudome). Steve Wilson has clearly been given the green light to spend big on the Pac Rim. At the same time, we haven't seen as many highly publicized big bonus signings in Latin America though the Cubs continue to sign Latin American teenagers in quantity (looking back to 2006 and 2007, Larry Suarez is the only confirmed 6-figure bonus signing although it's likely that other Latin signings might be 6-figure guys who just didn't get as much pub [possibly Yohan Gonzalez or Gian Guzman?]).

 

Maybe the Cubs have shifted to a strategy of spending their international budget on more quantity in Latin America rather than just the big bonus "quality" guys in light of the spiraling bonus figures down there (and the introduction of Scott Boras to the Latin UDFA market) and are supplementing that with big bonus "quality" guys from the Pac Rim since that area is still not as well scouted. Of course quite a few of those lesser bonused guys do turn out to be solid big leaguers and even stars.

 

If that is in fact the case, while I'd love the Cubs to be big players in both Latin America and the Pac Rim, I'd rather this strategy with some high ceiling guys mixed in than what the Cubs seemed to be doing in the middle of the decade (post-Zambrano, post-Pie, post-Alfredo Francisco, post-Choi and post-Ryu) when they didn't sign any big names period.

 

2008:

 

RHP Adam Spencer, Australia (unconfirmed $170,000 bonus)

LHP Cody Hams, Australia (unconfirmed $150,000 bonus)

SS Hak-Ju Lee, South Korea (unconfirmed bonus from $750,000 - $1.15 million)

 

2007:

 

RHP Hung-Wen Chen, Taiwan (appproximately $200,000 bonus)

RHP Dae-Eun Rhee, South Korea (confirmed $525,000 bonus)

 

Pics of Lee:

 

http://sports.donga.com/MEDIA/Photo/2008/04/17/20080417-18.jpg

 

http://eastwindupchronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/pho_200804280958080107000001070100-001.jpg

 

http://c2image.channel2.co.kr/C2_IMAGE/ARTICLE/ATL_1839/183943_PG1_101.jpg

 

http://img.hani.co.kr/imgdb/resize/2008/0424/05078513_20080424.JPG

[Guest]

Jayson Stark of ESPN joins the Michael Inoa hype machine:

 

The next big thing?: It's 10 years ago now since the Yankees handed a $1.52-million signing bonus to a 16-year-old Dominican pitcher by the name of Ricardo Aramboles. It's believed that no Latino pitcher (non-Cuban division) has topped that bonus since. But there's so much buzz about a Dominican right-hander named Michel Inoa, it looks as if Aramboles' record is in serious danger this summer. More than a dozen teams are in on Inoa, who is already hitting 94 on the gun -- at age 16.

 

Two new names who could also be getting 7-figure bonuses this July:

 

The Lower Hudson Valley Journal News[/url]"]Outfielder Orlandito Rodriguez of the Dominican Republic, outfielder Luis Domoromo of Venezuela and right-hander Michel Inoa of the Dominican Republic are the three hot names as organizations scout international free agents. All three could command seven-figure signing bonuses during the July signing period. Yankees general manager Brian Cashman was in the Dominican last month to observe players at a tryout camp

 

The Astros are interested in all 3 of these guys. The Padres are also interested in Inoa.

[SouthSideRyan]

Inoa went in my fantasy league's 5 round prospect draft this year.

[Guest]

Q: Chris from Vermont asks:

You mentioned Michael Inoa. If you were handicapping the race for him, how would you rate the field and where do you think he ends up?

 

A: Ben Badler: This probably won't surprise anyone, but the Yankees, Red Sox, Braves, Mariners and Mets should be the frontrunners, and from what I've heard, the Yankees might have the edge right now, but the rumors surrounding July 2 guys fly around at this time of year like the Lancaster winds, which makes it's tough to get a reliable grip on hooking up players with specific teams.

 

Q: Anton from the Bronx asks:

Since your taking July 2nd questions ... Do you see a Venezuelan kid this year commanding a bigger bonus than that given to Jesus Montero?

 

A: Ben Badler: There's still a couple months to go, and plenty more information to gather, but I could see that. And you might think it seems way too early for this, but it sounds like the 2009 international signing class could be even better than this year's crop.

 

And 2008 is supposed to be a banner crop in Latin America so if 2009 is even better, that'd be amazing.

 

Jayson Stark:

 

• WHO WANTS TO BE A $6-MILLIONAIRE: Two weeks ago in Rumblings, we wrote about the buzz building around 16-year-old Dominican pitcher Michel Inoa. One scouting director told us this week the Yankees and Mariners are already sending signals they're prepared to throw $3 million to $4 million at Inoa -- which would double the largest bonus ever for a Dominican pitcher -- "and it wouldn't surprise me if somebody eventually goes to $6 million." Whew. The bidding doesn't open until July 2, if you want to mark your calendars.

 

Sounds like BS.