Breaking Down the Los Angeles Dodgers' International Signings so Far

Seth VictorJul 13, 2015

July 2 was the beginning of the international free-agent signing period, and each team has a certain amount of money it is allowed to spend. The process used to determine this number is similar to the one used to determine draft pools, in that teams with worse records get more money and vice versa. As a result of their excellent 2014 season, the Los Angeles Dodgers had just over $2 million to spend.

However, they chose to go way over that limit. The penalties for doing so are not very harsh. Teams must pay a tax and forfeit the right to sign players for over $300,000 for the next two seasons.

Teams like the Dodgers choose to do this because there is not as large a difference as one would expect between players who sign for $500,000 and those who sign for $100,000, and the ability to sign multiple multi-million-dollar players in one window certainly outweighs that cost.

The following sections will include brief descriptions of the top five players the Dodgers signed. I have also included their other four signings for the sake of completeness, but they are relatively unknown Latin American teenagers who are unlikely to make the big leagues. However, it is worth remembering their names and positions for the future.

Yadier Alvarez, RHP

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The 19-year-old Cuban righty was the Dodgers' top international prospect this summer, and his $16 million contract took them past their bonus pool on its own.

Alvarez is an interesting case. The current MLB international signing system was designed with 16-year-old Dominicans and Venezuelans in mind. Free agents over the age of 23 are not subject to the team’s spending pool. Alvarez, however, is like fellow Cuban Yoan Moncada in that he defected before he was old enough to be exempt.

Starling Heredia, OF

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In October, FanGraphs Prospect Analyst Kiley McDaniel said that Heredia “may be the top prospect in this class.” As a 16-year-old with exceptional tools, Heredia is an excellent addition to a Dodgers farm system that is quickly catching up to its major league counterpart.

However, it is worth remembering that even with his immense potential, Heredia is still likely at least five years away from even sniffing the big leagues. Even the best international signings don’t make an impact immediately. Even Miguel Cabrera didn’t debut until he was 20 years old.

Ronny Brito, SS

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Steven Senne/Associated Press

Andrew Friedman oversaw this entire spending spree.

True Blue LA’s write-up of the Dodgers’ international signing day quotes Ben Badler of Baseball America as saying that Brito is a “pure shortstop.” He appears to have a relatively light bat, but the agility required to play shortstop indicates that he is certainly athletic enough to have some ability at the plate.

Oneil Cruz, SS

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In another True Blue LA recap of the Dodgers’ signings, Josh Byrnes, the Dodgers' vice president of baseball operations, stated that Cruz is unlikely to remain at shortstop, which is not an unusual fate for a young infielder.

Like in the United States, the best and most athletic players often play shortstop growing up because there is no one else on their team who is qualified to do so, but players often get moved to different positions as they mature. Cruz appears to be one of those players.

Christopher Arias, OF

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Damian Dovarganes/Associated Press

Farhan Zaidi is the Dodgers' GM.

Christopher Arias signed for $500,000, which is a significant but not elite sum of money. This indicates that he is viewed as a solid prospect but not a surefire major leaguer, and he is not on par with the other players on this list in terms of quality.

Baseball America’s scouting report states that Arias is likely a corner outfielder whose career will hinge on whether he can make enough contact to benefit from his prodigious power.