2013-14 International Free Agency Thread

[CubsWin]

Anybody know how much, if anything, the Cubs have left in the 2012 IFA pool money? It's use it by June 15th or lose it...

[Guest]

Anybody know how much, if anything, the Cubs have left in the 2012 IFA pool money? It's use it by June 15th or lose it...

 

Not all signing info is out there but with what is out there, if they're willing to pay penalties, they have $390,000.

[Guest]

Cubs signed RHPs Enrique de Los Rio and Salavdor Jerez. Don't have any additional information on them.

[Guest]

Cubs signed RHPs Enrique de Los Rio and Salavdor Jerez. Don't have any additional information on them.

 

MLB.com says de los Rio was born on 5/2/1995 (18 years old) and is Venezuelan. 6'1", 175.

 

Jerez was born on 3/28/1993 (20 years old), also Venezuelan and 6'4", 205.

[ctcf]

Cubs signed RHPs Enrique de Los Rio and Salavdor Jerez. Don't have any additional information on them.

 

MLB.com says de los Rio was born on 5/2/1995 (18 years old) and is Venezuelan. 6'1", 175.

 

Jerez was born on 3/28/1993 (20 years old), also Venezuelan and 6'4", 205.

 

Still going after the big pitchers, it would appear.

[davell]

The Twins are evidently talking quite a bit with the handler of Eloy Jimenez. I hope we still can find a way to land him and Telles.

[CubsWin]

The Twins are evidently talking quite a bit with the handler of Eloy Jimenez. I hope we still can find a way to land him and Telles.

Who is Telles? Did you mean Torres?

[davell]

The Twins are evidently talking quite a bit with the handler of Eloy Jimenez. I hope we still can find a way to land him and Telles.

Who is Telles? Did you mean Torres?

Yeah, not sure what I was thinking. Still want to see us trade for more money. Get those 2 and Perez or Tseng-would be a phenomenal haul.

[craig]

Is Jiminez or any of the other players we think we're interested in old enough to be signed right away, or is he one who they'd need to wait a month or more before he becomes eligible?

[Guest]

Is Jiminez or any of the other players we think we're interested in old enough to be signed right away, or is he one who they'd need to wait a month or more before he becomes eligible?

 

The big names the Cubs have been linked to are already 16 and eligible to sign on July 2nd.

[Guest]

The Twins are evidently talking quite a bit with the handler of Eloy Jimenez. I hope we still can find a way to land him and Telles.

Who is Telles? Did you mean Torres?

Yeah, not sure what I was thinking. Still want to see us trade for more money. Get those 2 and Perez or Tseng-would be a phenomenal haul.

 

Ben Badler on Tseng:

 

Tseng had dominated his peers and now foreign professionals, all while showing the stuff of a first-round pick had he been born in the United States. At 6-foot-1, 200 pounds, he has a broad back, strong legs and, while scouts don’t project him to throw any harder, he was already sitting at 89-92 mph and reaching 94. Some scouts gave him a plus grade for both his changeup and his curveball, a pitch one scout said “he was throwing for strikes whenever he wanted” while mixing in an average slider too.

 

“He’s way legit,” said a second scout. “He’s better than a lot of high school guys going in the first round (in the U.S.). He’s going to be a four-pitch guy with a wipeout change and a tight-spinning, downer breaking ball. The changeup could be a 70 (on the 20-80 scale). Sometimes he’ll drop and drive and leave the ball up in the zone, but he could be really good.”

 

That was 2012. This year has been a different story. Tseng’s talent earned him a place on Taiwan’s WBC team, but he struggled at the tournament in March. That’s understandable for an 18-year-old competing against the top professional players from other countries, but his stuff lacked the crispness he had shown a few months earlier. In two relief appearances, he pitched an inning, gave up a run, one hit, two walks and struck out a batter. His fastball parked in the high 80s, his breaking ball got away from him and his control was shaky.

 

Ever since that point, scouts have been scratching their heads over why they haven’t seen his stuff return. Some have concerns about his durability because of his mechanics, while others think the stuff he showed at the end of 2012 will be there once he’s put on a throwing schedule from a major league organization.

 

Doesn't sound like Badler has a good grasp on who will sign Tseng, suggesting a few different teams. This is what he said about the Cubs:

 

The Cubs have been active signing players from that region as well, but they have locked in hard on top Latin American talent.

[Guest]

@TGold_PG: #July2 eligible RHP Mayky Perez (San Pedro de Macoris, DR) K'd side @ #PGNational sitting 91-91 [yep], touching 92 w/ good downhill leverage

[Tangled Up in Plaid]

@BenBadler 17m

 

Status of giant, scout-heavy feature on a top July 2 international prospect for tomorrow: Complete.

[Tangled Up in Plaid]

Cubs in heavy pursuit of who most teams consider the top international prospect: http://www.baseballamerica.com/international/eloy-jimenez-stands-out-among-international-prospects/

 

“I think it’s safe to say that, if he’s not the best, he’s in the top three,” said one international director. “I’d probably say he’s the best.”

 

Growing up in Santo Domingo, Jimenez was a standout athlete. He competed in local basketball tournaments and earned a green belt in karate, traveling to national karate tournaments until he was 10.

 

Now 16 and 6-foot-4, 200 pounds, Jimenez draws the inevitable comparisons to Hernandez, another righthanded outfielder with similar size who also trained in Nina’s program. Several scouts think the comparison fits, with Jimenez a better version of Hernandez. Jimenez has run the 60-yard dash as fast as 6.7 seconds, which is above-average speed. Other scouts have said his speed plays closer to average, and as he matures physically, he should be a corner outfielder if he doesn’t start there immediately, with average to a tick-above-average arm strength.

 

“He’s a lanky, long-armed hitter,” said a third international director. “He’s very similar to Elier Hernandez. They’re calm in the box during BP—(Nina) teaches them well—so they’re pretty efficient, pretty simple. They don’t have a lot going on before the swing and they’re not wild hackers, so that’s all good. But it’s all about games, tools turning into skills and how they perform in the game.”

 

“I think he’s going to be a good hitter,” said an American League scout. “Eloy is a big guy—I just don’t see the power—but I think he’s a really good hitter. He knows how to play baseball, he’s got a good arm—he’s a Jermaine Dye type of guy. He’s probably one of the best baseball players out there. I’ve seen him a lot. He has good instincts. The thing with him is, he has good bat speed, I just think he spins his hips so quickly and his hands don’t get through. He makes good solid contact to all fields, so once he learns to control his hips more, he’ll have more power. I think it’s there, he just gets through his hips real quick, but he centers the ball and he hits to all fields. I like him a lot.”

[ctcf]

“I think he’s going to be a good hitter,” said an American League scout. “Eloy is a big guy—I just don’t see the power—but I think he’s a really good hitter. He knows how to play baseball, he’s got a good arm—he’s a Jermaine Dye type of guy. He’s probably one of the best baseball players out there. I’ve seen him a lot. He has good instincts. The thing with him is, he has good bat speed, I just think he spins his hips so quickly and his hands don’t get through. He makes good solid contact to all fields, so once he learns to control his hips more, he’ll have more power. I think it’s there, he just gets through his hips real quick, but he centers the ball and he hits to all fields. I like him a lot.”

 

Wait... So he could have power?

[Tangled Up in Plaid]

Yeah, that was weird. He comps his projection to Jermaine Dye, who's career slash line is .274/.338/.488. Obviously plenty of power.

[mul21]

Maybe he meant to say he hasn't seen the power yet. Who knows, that really is confusing.

[ctcf]

Ok, just glad I wasn't the only one.

[Guest]

I find most scouts to be essentially illiterate. I'm reading the first part as "I haven't seen the power yet."

[Guest]

...Which is what mul said.

[Guest]

Yeah, I believe what mul21 and CSC said are what the scout was trying to say.

[Guest]

ABTY posted this in response to someone posting a link about the guys we're interested in

 

Jimenez is the one I hear everyone talking about... Miguel Sano's name keeps popping up as a bat comparison, which if that came to fruition, we'd be looking at a top 10 prospect in all of baseball in two to four years...

 

By the way, the new Dominican facility is playing a HUGE roll in the process down there... Expect the Cubs to land top guys away from other teams if money is similar on a fairly consistent basis...

 

I know we had expressed some concern about whether the new rules would make the new facility a waste, but could it be argued that since the playing field has been leveled more in regards to what can be spent on IFA, it actually makes the facility MORE valuable than it would have been with the old rules, since it would just come down to money back then?

[davell]

Badler posted an article with some stuff on Torres in it. Anything interesting or just a rehash?

[ctcf]

ABTY posted this in response to someone posting a link about the guys we're interested in

 

Jimenez is the one I hear everyone talking about... Miguel Sano's name keeps popping up as a bat comparison, which if that came to fruition, we'd be looking at a top 10 prospect in all of baseball in two to four years...

 

By the way, the new Dominican facility is playing a HUGE roll in the process down there... Expect the Cubs to land top guys away from other teams if money is similar on a fairly consistent basis...

 

I know we had expressed some concern about whether the new rules would make the new facility a waste, but could it be argued that since the playing field has been leveled more in regards to what can be spent on IFA, it actually makes the facility MORE valuable than it would have been with the old rules, since it would just come down to money back then?

 

I think that could definitely be argued and is probably the logical answer. If everything else is equal, wouldn't you go with the team that you knew better?

[Guest]

Ben Badler on Gleyber Torres:

 

Baseball America[/url]"]This year, teams can choose from five shortstops who have separated themselves from the pack and could be in line for bonuses of at least $1 million. Some teams believe Gleyber Torres, who trains with Ciro Barrios, is the best all-around shortstop. He is widely expected to be the top-paid player in Venezuela this year, with the Cubs strongly linked to him. Scouts highest on Torres believe he can stick at shortstop, has hit in games and brings solid power for the position from the right side of the plate.

 

Torres, 16, showed above-average speed back in November, but his running times have been closer to average more recently. At 5-foot-11, 180 pounds, Torres’ hands and arm work well in the field but some scouts prefer more athleticism at shortstop, so he could end up being a player who splits time between shortstop, second and third base as he moves up.