New York Yankees Sign Cuban Prospect Adonis Garcia to Minor League Deal

The Yankees have signed Cuban outfielder Adonis Garcia to a one-year minor league contract worth $400,000, reports Marc Carig of The Star Ledger (via MLBtraderumors.com).

Garcia, 26, stands at 5'7" and weighs about 170 pounds.

Ben Badler of Baseball America claims that Garcia doesn't possess any standout tools, so he likely won't ever develop into a major league regular at this point in his career.

His bat is advanced, though, as he has shown much promise playing in Serie Nacional, Cuba's top professional league. Because of this, he'll likely move through the system quickly.

Garcia made his debut in that league in 2004, and enjoyed a breakout season in 2008-2009.

During that season, he hit an impressive .355/.426/.613 in 282 at-bats.

He has played mostly left field in his career, but he also has experience at both second and third base.

Major League Baseball had declared Garcia ineligible to sign for six months because of fraudulent residency papers.

Garcia drew interest from several teams this winter before choosing to sign with the Yankees on Wednesday.

It was believed that he would sign for somewhere between $16 million and $18 million, but his tools ended up warranting much less money (via MLBtraderumors).

There's a good possibility that we'll see Garcia in the majors at some point next season.