Due to the lack of available information, there hasn’t been much to talk about yet with the international signing period almost seven weeks old. Clubs are even more hush-hush on this than they were with the negotiations with their draft picks.
But Baseball America’s update today included a few notes about your Seattle Mariners.
First off, they are one of the three front runners for Edward Salcedo, a shortstop from the Dominican and a Scott Boras client that is expected to get the biggest bonus.
He wasn’t eligible until July 30, so negotiations are still very fresh, but Seattle is very much in on him, and one person I spoke to said they might be the team out in front if they are willing to pony up the dough.
Boras was initially hinting at a $5 million bonus, but that’s not going to happen. He might get Salcedo as much as $3 million, however, which is a steep price for a kid that turned 16 three weeks ago.
In Bob Engle we trust, though, and if he says give him $3 million, I’d listen to him.
BA’s report stated that Boras expects to get his player signed by the end of next week.
Stay tuned.
The M’s did ink a shortstop already in 17-year-old Jhrmivy Dejesus who reportedly received a $1.05 million bonus. One scouting director called Dejesus “an everyday shortstop with a potentially plus bat. Not a superstar, but a really valuable talent.”
Carlos Triunfel Photo by Mike Andruski
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Some these signings need to come with pronunciation guides. I had enough trouble with McyQuin Lora, but now I have to deal with some high bonus kid named Jhrmivy? What, did they make a list of their favorite consonants and draw them out of a hat? At least Asdrubal made some sense…
The Mariners have called him Jer-mee-vee, with a soft J in the way of a “zh”… but they are hitting about .280 with their names.
That’s the hardest name to pronounce from anywhere that I have ever seen!
Is Edward Salcedo a Triunfel-type player? What are the other teams that are bidding for him?
What’s an everyday shortstop with a potential plus bat?? Orlando Cabrera?
Pulled this from a blog..
“He projects to be the complete package,” said one international scouting director from a National League club. “He’s got plus range, arm strength and great hands at the position. He might have to move to third base at some point eventually, but he’s going to hit for average and power”
Sorry bout the multiple posts, but that quote above is about Salcedo.. mentions the Mets and Yankees as the other two frontrunners
Perfectgame has this scouting report on him.. also has a pic.. he looks like a strong young man..
Edward Salcedo is a FA SS with a 6′3”, 190 lb. frame from La Vega, Dominican Republic. Big League body, strong and athletic. Smooth, easy defensive actions, easy plus arm, can really play SS. Aggressive swing, power projection, deep load from wide base, good bat speed, geared to drive fastballs, timing will be an issue. All the tools to be a top player. Potential 1st round type if in draft.
Jason,
A bit off-topic, but I missed that Bibens-Dirx has been out since June 30. Arm troubles?
Jason,
Why is 16 yrs old the age international players become eligible to sign? That seems awfully young
Three million is a bit steep for a sixteen year old but I don’t mind the M’s paying that. I remember one of the main guys from BA saying a couple of days ago that players that are overpaid for are the ones that usually pan out or pay off. He was talking about the draft but I don’t see why this wouldn’t apply to international signings as well. Thus, this might be a worthwhile investment. Sometimes, this is what you gotta do if you want to compete. I won’t complain if the M’s pay heavily for this guy.
Hey Jason,
By any chance do you have any information on the other players the M´s signed: SS Gabriel Noriega (Venezuela) and OF Efrain Nunez (DR)?
Seems like the M’s have been pretty active on the international front again this year. BA also posted a list of this year’s biggest signing bonuses, and the M’s have got three of the top 20. Here is the list:
INTERNATIONAL SIGNINGS
PLAYER, POS. ORGANIZATION AGE COUNTRY SIGNING BONUS
Michael Almanzar, 3b Red Sox 16 Dominican Republic $1.5 million
Kelvin De Leon, of Yankees 16 Dominican Republic $1.1 million
Jhrmivy DeJesus, ss Mariners 16 Dominican Republic $1 million
Julio Teheran, rhp Braves 16 Colombia $850,000
Gabriel Noriega, ss Mariners 16 Venezuela $800,000
Arodys Vizcaino, rhp Yankees 16 Dominican Republic $800,000
Elio De La Rosa, 3b Yankees 16 Dominican Republic $750,000
Jonathan Galvez, ss Padres 16 Dominican Republic $750,000
Wilmer Flores, ss Mets 16 Venezuela $700,000
Henry Pena, of Yankees 16 Dominican Republic $600,000
Martin Perez. lhp Rangers 16 Venezuela $580,000
Wilson Suero, ss Rangers 16 Dominican Republic $558,000
Jefry Marte, 3b Mets 16 Dominican Republic $550,000
Eduardo Sosa, of Yankees 16 Venezuela $500,000
Ryde Rodriguez, of Cardinals 19 Cuba $460,000
Hitaniel Arias, of Brewers 16 Dominican Republic $450,000
Efrain Nunez, of Mariners 16 Dominican Republic $450,000
Cesar Puello, of Mets 16 Dominican Republic $400,000
Angel Joseph, of Giants 16 Dominican Republic $350,000
Kevin Moscatel, c Cardinals 16 Venezuela $350,000
http://www.baseballamerica.com/online/prospects/features/264683.html
Hopefully, the M’s can add Edward Salcedo to that list. It would be awesome to add two top SS prospects (and Boras clients) from the DR in consecutive years. Hopefully, Triunfel’s success this year will make them open their wallets.
But even if they don’t, with DeJesus, Noriega, and Nunez, the M’s have already done pretty well.
I’m working on getting something on Noriega and Nunez…
Vaughn… there has to be a limit of some sort and 16 makes as much sense as any, since the International kids have a bit of a disadvantage as an 18-year-old coming over — competing with the 17-19 year old North American kids when they have a language barrier and some culture shock to deal with as well.
The extra 1-2 years is perfect, really.
And yeah, blowgun, Orlando Cabrera is a good comp for an everyday shortstop with a potentially plus bat.
Good but not a star.
Thanks for the list Jerry…that’s awesome. Also, Jason, it seems that the Mariners have a kind of a renewed interest in the Dominican Republic. Is that the case? It was just a couple of years ago the system practically had no Dominican prospects stateside.
How good is Edward Salcedo? Is he a Triunfel-caliber player?
The M’s, and several other clubs, are just much more comfortable with DR now than they were a few years ago. With all the trouble there politically, and with the documentation being such a huge issue there, it was difficult to scout there.
re: Greg
I think Salcedo will come to the US with more expectations that Triunfel. Adding him would be ENORMOUS.
wow, I am REALLY hoping they get him.
thanks, Jason
Yeah, if they get him, it’s an unbelievable two-year run in LatAm.
But they have hefty competition in the Mets and Yankees.
what are the chances they get him?
Hard to say… If they were willing to be the top bidder, or at least equal the top bid, they have as good a shot as NYY and NYM.
How much say does the kid get in this?? I imagine a young Latin kid knows a lot bout the Yankees, and even Mets.. but I cant imagine he knows much bout the Mariners..
Is Boras running the show or does the kid have some say in which team he’d rather play for? And is the decision based on simply the relationship the kid has with the scouting people?
Crud, did Tillman go down with an injury tonight?? He only pitched 3 innings.. wasn’t all that effective, but wasn’t bad enough where he’d be pulled after 3.. makes me think something happend
Oh, he knows the basics. So many of these players know other players that have signed with certain teams, maybe were friends with one or two… they know enough, and the agents know plenty.
Tillman isn’t hurt, from what I have been told.
DeJesus, Noriega and Nunez, not bad at all. With Salcedo, it will be damn impressive.
Jason, what chance do these players have to deput stateside next year, will some of them follow the Triunfel approach, or are they more likely to first start in instructional and rookie leagues for a season or two?
Jason, do you have news on Austin Bibens-Dirx?
Willmore, welcome back. Long time no post.
Salcedo, visa issues aside, would play in the US next year if the M’s signed him. I don’tknow about how aggressive the Yankees and Mets would be. I do know a Mets scout, I’ll ask him.
Not sure about Noriega or Nunez, but I’dbe surprised if Dejesus didn’t play in Wisconsin.
re: Adam
yeah, I do. He’s out for the year with an elbow injury, but no surgery necessary as of yet. Will likely throw a few frames in the Instructional League to test things out.
Thanks - I completely missed that he’d been injured.
Was Triunfel the #1 international fa last year?
And will he develop power?
The Yankees catcher was thought to be the top talent, mostly because he’s a catcher, but he has tons of talent.
Triunfel was probably the second or third best guy.
He’ll develop power. He doesn’t even have a swing right now that is likely to generate much power, so when they make those adjustments, we’ll start seeing some pop.
Is that an easy adjustment to make in his swing? If so, why doesnt he make that adjustment now?
It’s a process, Greg. He’s 17 years old. You can’t just tell a kid, even if it’s every day for 7 months, to do something and watch it happen in front of your eyes.
Look at Edgar… he didn’t start hitting for power until he was 26 years old.
Plus, you have to be careful how much you try to teach a kid all at once.
Lets keep things in perspective with Triunfel.
The guy is only 17. Think about how much an average person fills out between ages 17 and, say, 25. The biggest adjustment he will make is just growing up.
He is playing against guys who are in their early to mid 20’s. Any complaints about his performance are just nit-picking. Sure, it would be nice to see some power. But what he is doing right now is pretty remarkable.
ya u make a good point, Jerry
any update on Salcedo?
We will not hear anything on Salcedo until he signs, and that could take as long two weeks, though Boras gave it a week.
Why are the international signings done this way? Seems wildly unfair that the highest bidder gets the guy, although that is how the draft is turning out.(thanks to the Tigers, Yankees, and Red Sox)
That’s not always true, though. Atlanta was the high bidder for Felix, but the M’s formed a stronger relationship with him and he signed for less.
Would the Mariners’ penchant for moving guys through the minors at a quicker pace be attractive to these international guys? Kinda like a draft guy looking for a Major League contract?
that is one example. 95% of the time it doesn’t usually go down like that
Not only did ATL offer Felix more, so did the Yankees and two teams offered Triunfel more.
Bob Engle for President.
I’m telling you, he’s the team’s MVP. Period.
Speaking of international signings, Asdrubal Cabrera is off to a fantastic start since his call up with Cleveland, playing every day at second base as a 21 year old.
Salty, I’ve never seen numbers on what percentage of players are taking the highest bid, but it’s safe to assume the majority of these kids are taking the high number—just not ALL of them.
Besides, if it’s “wildly unfair” for international players to sign for larger offers, than the MLB free agent market is just as slanted.
might be going to the yankees
http://mvn.com/milb-yankees/2007/08/23/yanks-closing-in-on-another-big-ifa-signing/
that news just ruined my day..
he had an absolute gun of an arm, awesome bat, and a 6.80 60meter time, thats pretty darn quick..
well hope he turns out like the last toolsy guy the Yanks signed and gave a big signing bonus to internationally years ago. LOL
Peter Abraham reported this morning that the Yankees did not sign Salcedo. Also stated that the Yanks were never involved.
http://yankees.lohudblogs.com/
I wonder if that was just a big smokescreen.
Interesting, but even Gammons is reporting that they did.
This is why the international scene sucks. Nobody will talk, and not talking helps NOBODY.
Cleveland is the winner, according to one of their US scouts.
I’ve been checking the blogs and it is crazy. There’s rumors that the Yanks signed him, then the M’s signed him and the last blog I found said that the Indians signed him for just over $2 mil.
The Indians legitimately believe they have agreed on a deal with him for almost three mil.
I haven’t talked to the Mariners, yet.
They’re reporting the Mariners got him over at minorleagueball.com
lol who has him now?
Is Sickels reporting that, or someone else?
im sorry but i can not find that anywhere at minorleagueball.com
Here it is.
One poster starts a thread saying he’s hearing Mariners. Everyone else chimes in saying it’s the Indians.
Sounds like Jason’s right to me.
http://minorleagueball.com/story/2007/8/24/16027/3677
where have you heard Indians, other than Jason’s post?
In the post I linked in #53.
On a semi related topic, what kind of stuff does Fabian Williamson have? Kid struck out 13 (with only one walk!) tonight. 18 year old lefty with solid numbers in a hitters league…
The AZL Brew Crew strikes out at a disproportionate rate compared to the rest of the league though. They had 514 Ks coming into the game, and no one else has cracked 450 (M’s are closest at 448).
Good stuff J.
However, Fabian’s K ratios are still pretty solid, this game notwithstanding. Is there anything to him?
There is something to Fabian, though at this juncture it’s just about him throwing strikes with above-average stuff and the bats in that league are the worst in years at that level.
I’ll have a full SR on him this winter, he’s interesting to say the least, and certainly snuck in under the radarthis June.
Jason, have you heard anything else about Salcedo? And where do you see Butler starting next season at? Will the M’s want to subject him to the horror that is High Desert? Or does he have a shot to jump to West Tenn? Will Tillman go to West Tenn as well?
Butler will be in HD I believe… Tillman in West Tenn.. He’s passed his HD test, he deserves a shot in AA…
Butler on the other hand didn’t throw enough innings or stay healthy enough to go right to AA.. i think he’d be well off pitching some more in Wisky or HD before getting a callup to West Tenn
How much Butler pitched has nothing to do with where he might start 2008.
I don’t see any scenario where a healthy Butler starts the season in Wisconsin.
And Tillman is probably headed for West Tenn.
Salcedo has NOT signed yet. We should find out by Friday or Saturday.
It will be interesting to see what happens with Salcedo. If the M’s can land him, it will be anothernof those ’statement’ signings, like Triunfel, where the club demonstrates that it is going to be a major player in the market. Beyond our interests in seeing the M’s add another top prospect, it actually makes a lot of sense to overspend in the international market insread of the draft. It is tough to watch the organization stick to slot money instead of spend like Detroit and NY, I would rather see them overspend internationally. The m’s have a scouting advantage there, and they can exploit that advantage in a more cost-effective way. For the same money it would have cost them to pick up a guy like Rick Porcello, the can insread sign Aumont, Salcedo, the two other Latin American players they have already locked up, and still have a million or so left over.
Let’s hope the M’s make the big signing again this year.
If the Mariners get Salcedo, they’ll have two enormous future stars that, coupled together with Tillman, Aumont and Felix, can win multiple division titles and if they are lucky enough, a few world series as well.
Blue chippers…
Where will Phillipe Aumont be going this offseason? I heard he was supposed to be going to instructional league so I was wondering if that meant the AFL.
Re 76:
If you throw Butler and Morrow into that mix it gets even better…..
Re: Aumont
Instructs.
Re: Morrow, Butler…
Yeah, Morrow for sure, because in the least he’s a dominant setup man or closer. Butler has a long ways to go. The issues he had medically this season are a serious red flag.
But he’s good and will be in that group if he’s healthy.
Sorry to get a little off topic, but during last nights game Blowers was saying that he thinks that the M’s should turn RRS into a starter, I know he can be good for 3-4 innings, but would’nt it take a while to effectivly stretch him out and to have to same stuff for 6-7 innings?
That’s a 2-part question, v-dubs…
1. It would really only take a few weeks to stretch him, a month max. And Blowers wasn’t suggesting they do it THIS YEAR.
RRS started 44 games in the minors, including 32 over a two-year span in 04-05 in High-A and AA ball.
It’s certainly something the Mariners will consider, as RRS is different from O’Flaherty in that the reason he’s a reliever now had nothing to do with his inability to stay healthy while undertaking the role.
2. Sustaining stuff is a potentially different story. It’s perhaps one of the most difficult things for a pitcher to do — find ways to remain effective through the lineup three times.
I think his value is best used in relief, though, and I believe he’ll ultimately remain there unless injuries force him to start.
Jason,
So you think that RRS is best suited for the bullpen. Will they maybe try to turn him into a starter during the offseason, after seeing how FA SP or trades work out? Also do you think they will make Morrow a starter for next year? That would be a nice rotation with Felix, Morrow, Batista, RRS, and …
It could be a start. But I hope that Morrow finally becomes a starter for next season.
What is your opinion of Woerman.. he’s pitched fairly well this season at West Tenn
Re: RRS/Morrow
The Mariners are planning on breaking Morrow into the rotation for 2008…
RRS? I think he remains the bullpen.
Woerman is a good arm with pretty good command, but is down the list behind guys like Mockolio as far as the next relief arms to get a look.
There is enough velo, consistency and stuff for him to effective in short stints… kind of reminds me of Scott Atchison.
Sounds good to me. I think Morrow in the rotation will be a big upgrade. Havin two young solid pitchers is great. I think Morrow will be extremely solid
I do too, I like Morrow. But I think he’s going to have a lot of growing pains as a starter. Command, and the inconsistency of his secondary pitches will be critical.
Oh ya I agree. Thats pretty much expected with young pitchers. But he has shown he can pitch at this level effectively
So are the M’s still in it for Salcedo? Who do you think the M’s will put in the 5th spot next year? I’m guessing Weaver and Ramirez will be gone with hopefully Morrow taking one spot. The trade market looks more promising than the free agent pool…any chance the M’s make a big splash in a trade for a SP?
With the report today that Guillen is close to resigning with the club, the fact that Ibanez and Vidro are signed through next year, and the success we have had to this point, and the fact that Tori Hunter is going to be in another uniform, I wonder if Bavasi will use Jones to try and get Santana. What do you think Jason?
No way he trades away Jones. Atleast I hope not. Jones is part of the untouchables that Bavasi put together. Plus it would take alot more than Jones to land Santana. I was really high on Balentien, but I guess the team doesn’t want a complete “youth” movement.
Will the M’s try to unload Sexson this offseason? Then use Ibanez or Vidro at 1B? Because Jones will start in LF next year.
I apologize if this has been mentioned in another thread, Jason, but I just read on Jim Callis’ chat that Salcedo is still on the market.
Good news, eh?
Yeah, I mentioned a few days ago that he had not signed despite reports that he had.
Chris Kline at BA is all over it.