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Jan 2014-June 2015 International Signings
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Post by ramireja on Feb 25, 2014 12:34:47 GMT -5
One note: wRC+ includes baserunning value, so Andrus' speed is already included in his 78 wRC+ last year (as is the marginal speed of others like Villar and Florimon and Kawasaki). But other than that (and that nit-pick helps your argument), I completely agree. This isn't 2003 anymore, and the offensive baseline for shortstops is very low. The average AL shortstop hit .253/.306/.363/.669 (84 wRC+) last year. With Iglesias' glove, if he even matches that AL SS average line, he'll be a well above-average player (somewhere in the realm of three and a half wins, I think). Fair enough, but the landscape could change quickly as guys like Bogaerts, Profar, Baez, Russell, Correa, Lindor and Machado (if he takes over for Hardy) enter their primes. Another thought. I have no doubt that Iglesias is an above average defensive SS, but I wonder if the flash he plays with slightly plays up his grade (say exaggerates a 65-70 to an 80)? I'll be interested to see how defensive metrics evaluate his performance over the next 2-3 years as compared to shortstops with reputations for being steady and dependable minus some flair.
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Post by mattpicard on Feb 25, 2014 19:26:07 GMT -5
One note: wRC+ includes baserunning value, so Andrus' speed is already included in his 78 wRC+ last year (as is the marginal speed of others like Villar and Florimon and Kawasaki). But other than that (and that nit-pick helps your argument), I completely agree. This isn't 2003 anymore, and the offensive baseline for shortstops is very low. The average AL shortstop hit .253/.306/.363/.669 (84 wRC+) last year. With Iglesias' glove, if he even matches that AL SS average line, he'll be a well above-average player (somewhere in the realm of three and a half wins, I think). Fair enough, but the landscape could change quickly as guys like Bogaerts, Profar, Baez, Russell, Correa, Lindor and Machado (if he takes over for Hardy) enter their primes. Another thought. I have no doubt that Iglesias is an above average defensive SS, but I wonder if the flash he plays with slightly plays up his grade (say exaggerates a 65-70 to an 80)? I'll be interested to see how defensive metrics evaluate his performance over the next 2-3 years as compared to shortstops with reputations for being steady and dependable minus some flair. I'm interested to see how his DRS and UZR numbers play out as well over a multi-year sample size. It's hard to think of Iglesias as only a 65 glove, but he could very well be closer to a 70 than an 80. It's only a 571.2 inning sample size at shortstop last season, so I shouldn't be drawing any meaningful conclusions about him, but it did strike me as interesting that he ranked as 0 runs above average under DRS, and his slightly positive UZR ranking was almost entirely due to making less errors than the average shortstop (2.0 ErrR). If he doesn't put up improved numbers there, he's not ever going to be a 2+ WAR player, so long as you agree that he's unlikely to match his 2013 offensive output over another full season.
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Post by soxfanatic on Feb 27, 2014 4:05:39 GMT -5
Also, pretty cool to see ex-Sox pitcher/now scout Dennis Neuman has signed his first player.
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Post by philsbosoxfan on Mar 4, 2014 20:22:41 GMT -5
I don't have a subscription but...
Ben Badler ?@benbadler 3m International Reviews launch tomorrow at BA. Over 200 scouting reports on all of the top 2013 signings. It's a monster.
Ben Badler ?@benbadler 2m If a player signed for $100,000 or more, we have a scouting report on him. Lots of new names, new reports & updates on the top July 2 guys.
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Post by philsbosoxfan on Mar 5, 2014 11:40:21 GMT -5
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Post by jmei on Mar 5, 2014 11:54:30 GMT -5
Thanks for the links. This is great stuff-- Badler really has the international market cornered. It's so tough otherwise to get scouting reports on these guys.
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Post by jimed14 on Mar 5, 2014 11:56:44 GMT -5
I can't even comprehend that. I don't think I could throw with my other arm from the pitchers mound to the catcher.
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Post by jimed14 on Mar 5, 2014 11:57:55 GMT -5
Thanks for the links. This is great stuff-- Badler really has the international market cornered. It's so tough otherwise to get scouting reports on these guys. Yeah, that was the first I read that Devers has a very good approach and can hit offspeed well.
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Post by pedroelgrande on Mar 5, 2014 11:59:06 GMT -5
Gerson Bautista is the biggest surprise for me. I had read his other reports on Devers, De Jesus, Garcia and Aybar and nothing has change other than De Jesus' FB ticking up. One more intriguing name to follow in the DSL.
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Post by okin15 on Mar 5, 2014 12:09:28 GMT -5
I don't understand the comment: "average running times in the 60-yard dash, but he’s going to slow down significantly."
There can't be many 17 yo male athletes who slow down once they get to college. I understand they're saying he's going to add bulk, but he could just as easily slim down and add a ton of muscle and get a lot faster.
I'm not really arguing as much as confused. Please enlighten me.
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Post by philsbosoxfan on Mar 5, 2014 12:13:22 GMT -5
Thanks for the links. This is great stuff-- Badler really has the international market cornered. It's so tough otherwise to get scouting reports on these guys. Badler has been my favorite International for a while now. We got lucky (I'm guessing because of the World Series), the other teams so far are subscription only. In a tweet, he said they will have scouting reports on 200 players over the next few weeks. I'm assuming (but not sure) that they are talking already signed players. There will also be an article on the upcoming July 2 signing period.
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Post by pedroelgrande on Mar 5, 2014 12:29:52 GMT -5
I don't understand the comment: "average running times in the 60-yard dash, but he’s going to slow down significantly." There can't be many 17 yo male athletes who slow down once they get to college. I understand they're saying he's going to add bulk, but he could just as easily slim down and add a ton of muscle and get a lot faster. I'm not really arguing as much as confused. Please enlighten me. Because of his body type scouts think he is going slow down once he starts to mature.
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Post by jmei on Mar 5, 2014 13:01:25 GMT -5
There can't be many 17 yo male athletes who slow down once they get to college. I understand they're saying he's going to add bulk, but he could just as easily slim down and add a ton of muscle and get a lot faster.Guys with a compact, stocky body type ( like Devers) would struggle to slim down even if they wanted to. He's got a well filled-out lower half, and guys like that generally don't get any faster as they age.
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Post by pedroelgrande on Mar 25, 2014 17:11:41 GMT -5
So I found an in depth article of Anderson Espinoza in a Venezuelan site, it was in a newspaper but the writer has his own blog too. Here is the link: mendoza-inning10.blogspot.com/2014/03/anderson-espinoza-sobresale-entre-los.html?m=1It's quite long but I was able to translate most of it, all of it basically but I'll need you guys to wire me some money..... Nah just kidding here it is, pardon my broken English: Anderson Espinoza didn't go unnoticed by scouts in attendance. In December, when MLB put together their last showcase for July 2 2014, the right-handler was already considered one of the best prospects in the country. El Caraqueño (meaning he is from Caracas) who turned 16 just a few weeks ago look like he will be the highest paid pitcher in the country. "Everything sound like that's gonna be true." says A national league scout who was in attendance at the showcase at the end of last year. "He had one of his best days. His fastball was 93-94 with good arm action, explosive in his movement and is always aggressive. A hard curve ball that although not 12-6 has good movement around the plate which fools hitters. The change up showed avg potential. When a 15 y/o can throw that hard with that quality off speed pitches he'll be a step above the rest and will make hitters of his same age, that haven't developed the strength on their wrists to react to such velocity, look silly" Espinoza, who is from La Parroquia 23 de Enero, is represented by Felix Luzon, president of 9 Star Sport Management. Espinoza has extensive experience in national tournaments with Distrito Capital. His achievements include two no-hitters, one a perfect game, one MVP and five participations in international tournaments with Venezuela. The last one in 2010 whe he won the clinching game of the panamerican tournament in Barraquilla. But to be a professional and support the rigors of training he wasn't accustom to he had to go through a rigorous strength and conditioning program in June 2013. "He got to us just in time so he wouldn't hurt himself." Remembers Dr. Jaime Noguera "Pitching comes natural to him, his actions are easy. But his elbow didn't support the velocity he was throwing at which cause him discomfort. His physiology didn't support it. So we designed a program to strengthen his core, arm, legs and back." The program worked, his qualities were enhanced. Although one detail jumped out every time he took the mound, he was 5'10. Not many pitchers of that size have made it to the mayors. "I can tell you today that he'll grow to 6'1. But teams talk about his maturity on the hill and his arm speed not his size" says Luzon. "His off speed stuff is above avg and some analysts consider him the best pitcher for July 2. We got his body to be able to support his arm. We expect he'll be healthy for years to come" The scout said he probably won't grow more than 5'11 but said he is special and will receive a high bonus. The article closed out saying the reports say he'll be the best paid pitcher in July 2 and mentions the close to $2 million we have heard. The Red Sox are mention as the closest team on Espinoza, though his agent had the usual agent talk. We'll see July 2.
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Post by stevedillard on Mar 25, 2014 17:18:48 GMT -5
I like our chances
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Post by flredsoxfan on Mar 29, 2014 14:53:41 GMT -5
Question about international signings... I guess the draft is for the US, PR and Canada. Am I correct? I know baseball is growing, so does the Sox have scouts in Europe and Asia, or is it the commissioner's office that keeps tabs on the international scene.
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Post by chavopepe2 on Mar 29, 2014 15:05:19 GMT -5
Question about international signings... I guess the draft is for the US, PR and Canada. Am I correct? I know baseball is growing, so does the Sox have scouts in Europe and Asia, or is it the commissioner's office that keeps tabs on the international scene. Welcome to the board flredsoxfan! I would recommend reading up on the main site and the wiki ( www.soxprospects.com/wiki.html) to learn some of the basics.
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Post by redsox1534 on Mar 29, 2014 15:56:15 GMT -5
Yeah I would rather the international players be in the same draft from the perspective of annually competitive teams. For instance in a year like this year Boston would be picking from the 30th best international player so a prospect of the Devers quality would never make it to the Red Sox. In a draft where both are brought together it does require smarter scouting and projection analysis when comparing the international, high school and college talent. Additionally you can merge the spending budgets for MLB teams to be more flexible in signing draft picks. I think you make the international draft order a lottery or just do a random way of selecting it or go the reverse order of the draft order, even could go reverse order of the draft then 2nd rd would be reverse of the 1st so same as the drafts order so serpantine. No way you can do both drafts with the best teams picking last just isnt fair especially with the cap on draft. Most these kids just want the chance to play baseball in the majors and get paid but it does matter were they play to some of them. Funny how the Rangers and Cubs last year and now the Yanks rumored to this year, sign every other top int player and in the past I dont recall teams going that hard on as many players, ya spend as much money overall but not on so many top players so its funny this new method is just creating a worse problem. The old draft and Int rules were perfectly fine. These owners all have money its there own fault if they dont spend it/spend it properly. Bring back the old rules!
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Post by jmei on Apr 2, 2014 21:17:00 GMT -5
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Post by jdb on Apr 27, 2014 15:07:34 GMT -5
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Post by jmei on May 5, 2014 11:22:37 GMT -5
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Post by philsbosoxfan on May 5, 2014 16:57:18 GMT -5
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Post by mjammz on May 6, 2014 9:46:28 GMT -5
According to Baseball America the Red Sox are poised to break their bonus cushion this year. Here is there excerpt from Badler's new July 2nd column:
Red Sox Push For Pitching
After picking up some of the top position players in the Dominican Republic over the last few years like Rafael Devers, Wendell Rijo and Manuel Margot, the Red Sox appear focused on pitching this year. They have a $1.88 million bonus pool, the second-lowest in baseball, but it looks like they will go well beyond that this year and face the maximum penalty.
The Red Sox are considered the favorites to sign 16-year-old Venezuelan righthander Andres Espinoza (video), who some scouts consider the No. 1 pitcher available this year and will likely fetch the highest bonus among July 2 pitchers. Like Dominican righthander Marcos Diplan, who signed with the Rangers for $1.3 million last year, Espinoza has big-time stuff packed into a smaller frame.
Reports vary about Espinoza’s height. He was around 5-foot-10, 160 pounds last year, and while he hasn’t showcased much recently, those who’ve seen him say he’s grown since then and put on another 20 or so pounds. Espinoza has pitched in multiple national and international tournaments, and his experience is evident in his command and savvy. He has good mechanics and throws strikes with one of the best fastballs in the class, ranging from 90-94 mph. He has good feel for a potentially above-average curveball and a developing changeup. He’s trained at the 9Stars Sports Management academy run by Felix Luzon.
Dominican righthander Christopher Acosta stood out at the MLB showcase in San Pedro de Macoris in January. Acosta threw strikes—a rare occurrence at the event—and didn’t walk anyone or allow a hit in two scoreless innings with four strikeouts. Acosta, 16, is a tall, lanky pitcher (6-foot-3, 180 pounds) with good pitchability and the three-pitch mix to project as a starter. He has a loose arm and a lively fastball that touches the low-90s. He throws a mid-70s curveball that has some loose rotation but has power and good depth. Some think his best pitch is his lively changeup, which he mixes in more frequently than most pitchers his age. Acosta trains with Alberto “Chico” Fana and is expected to command more than $1 million.
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Post by pedroelgrande on May 6, 2014 10:27:05 GMT -5
If they are going pitching heavy in IFA maybe they go hitter heavy in the draft.
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Post by pedroelgrande on May 6, 2014 11:04:46 GMT -5
Here is video of Acosta:
And here is video of Espinoza:
The Espinoza videos (there are more just go into the profile) appears to be from last year as you can hear the trainers gushing saying "we need to get this guy on a program" that was referenced in the Venezuelan report.
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