Last Monday Cuban prospect Yoan Moncada was cleared by Major League Baseball to sign with a team. The Los Angeles Dodgers are believed to be among the top suitors for the 19-year-old. When will he make his decision?
According to Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times, the prospect is expected to "field offers over the next two weeks and could sign with a team soon after." Moncada's agent, David Hastings, also told Hernandez he hopes to have a "clearer picture" where the Cuban will sign by the end of this week. Moncada reportedly has private workouts scheduled for next week, so the timetable for his signing was a bit murky until Hastings spoke.
The Dodgers, Yankees, Red Sox, Rangers and Padres are believed to be those that are seriously interested in the switch-hitting middle infielder, who may receive a $50 million signing bonus, which would be a record for an international amateur player. He has also conducted private workouts with the Giants, Rays, Tigers and Brewers, so it's possible one of these clubs makes a late push for him. However, the acquisition of Moncada will undoubtedly put teams over their bonus pools for the 2014-2015 signing period and they'll be subject to a 100% tax as a result (which would double his price tag). When all is said and done, a prospect may cost a team $100 million.
Although Los Angeles is suspected to be a frontrunner for Moncada, a number of signs suggest otherwise. Over the weekend a source said the team has had "serious reservations" about signing the Cuban prospect because of the potential contractual obligation that will be attached to an unproven player. Additionally, the team will be handcuffed on the international market for the next two seasons because of the penalties they will incur by signing him.
The Dodgers also have a deep farm system and overhauled their front office over the offseason to make more cost-effective personnel decisions, so it's possible they're simply doing their due diligence on Moncada rather than seriously considering dropping even more money after dumping a number of costly contracts in the past few months. However, Moncada is believed to be one of the best investments coming out of the international market.
We'll see what happens in the next few weeks.
"I'm kind of hoping we're at the final end of the process," Hastings added. "I hope I will be able to get Yoan into a team's spring-training practice as soon as possible."
