Updates On 15 Top Cuban Players

Teams are running around trying to keep up with all of the Cuban players who have left the country looking to sign with major league clubs. The majority of those players profile as organizational roster filler at best, but there are several players ranging from young teenage prospects who would start out in Rookie ball up to immediate major league starters in their 20s and 30s who are available.

Here is a rundown on the latest from 15 notable Cuban players who are available. Full scouting reports on many of these players are available here from our Top 20 Cuban player rankings. (Note: These are not updated rankings of players. These are just updates on 15 notable Cuban players.)

1. Yulieski Gurriel, 3b/2b

Gurriel should immediately be an above-average player either at third base (his primary position) or second base, where he also has experience, but he’s still far from being eligible to sign. Based on the precedent of the most recent Cuban players obtaining their residency in a foreign country and then applying for free agency from Major League Baseball, it has typically been at least six months before they get cleared to sign. I wouldn’t expect Gurriel to sign until the end of the season at the earliest, although being a high-profile player, who knows whether someone might find a way to get his timetable expedited.

2. Jose Fernandez, 2b/3b

Fernandez left Cuba around early December, so using the rough six-month timetable as an estimate, I would bet he becomes cleared to sign around the all-star break. As a 27-year-old lefthanded hitter with excellent contact skills and plate discipline, Fernandez could be a key upgrade for a contender in the second half that won’t cost a team prospects like a trade would. Or he could fill a hole for a non-contender simply looking to upgrade at second base, his primary position, though he does have experience at third as well.

While many Cuban players who leave the island suddenly pack on an incredible amount of muscle in a short window of time, Fernandez appears to have gone through a rapid weight loss since he arrived in the Dominican Republic. Fernandez’s thickening lower half and declining range had been a concern (as is the fact that the last time he played in Cuba was October 2014), so that will be something scouts will watch closely once he has his first open showcase and starts doing private workouts.

3. Lourdes Gurriel, ss/3b/of

Gurriel should be on a similar timetable to his older brother in terms of when he will get cleared to sign, but he won’t officially sign his contract until October. That’s when he turns 23, which will make him exempt from the international bonus pools. Not only will that enable Gurriel to sign a major league contract and not have the commissioner’s office essentially taking half of his contract because of the overage tax on the pools, but it means he will be able to sign with all 30 teams, even the ones in the penalty box for pool-eligible players. Gurriel’s most recent experience has been in the outfield, but I expect him to showcase at shortstop and third base, since I think he can stay in the infield.

4. Jorge Ona, of

Ona is still not a free agent, though when MLB finally does clear him, the Padres are the favorites to land him and would wait until July 2 do to so. Ona, 19, demolished the COPABE 18U Pan American Championship in Mexico in 2014, showing a compact righthanded swing with good bat speed, above-average power and arm strength that should fit well in right field.

5. Norge Ruiz, rhp

Ruiz had been training in the Dominican Republic and even had an open showcase there that Cubs president Theo Epstein attended, but he’s now in the Bahamas, where he has his residency and is waiting for MLB to make him a free agent. Ruiz isn’t that big (5-foot-10, 195 pounds), but he’s athletic, has average to plus stuff across the board and excellent feel for pitching for someone who turns 22 next month. The Cubs and Dodgers have been linked to Ruiz.

6. Randy Arozarena, ss

Arozarena is a free agent who’s in the process of deciding whether to sign immediately or wait to sign with a team that will go over its pool on July 2. Training in Mexico, Arozarena is a 21-year-old with a sound, quick righthanded swing that stays in the hitting zone. He makes frequent contact, uses the whole field, can hit breaking pitches, recognizes balls and strikes and is a plus runner. He has played the infield and outfield in Cuba, though he has showcased at shortstop.

7. Vladimir Gutierrez, rhp

The 20-year-old Gutierrez was one of my favorite pitchers in Cuba, where he pitched well at a young age, had a projectable 6-foot-3, 170-pound frame, an 88-93 mph fastball that projected to reach at least into the mid-90s once he filled out along with a plus curveball.

Yet Gutierrez, who left Cuba a little more than a year ago and became a free agent last summer, is still unsigned. Part of that is because he simply hasn’t looked right during his workouts for clubs while training in Florida. His mechanics have been off and his fastball velocity not only wasn’t increasing, it had gone backwards at times. He has switched agents multiple times, going from Octagon and then to Bart Hernandez, who was recently indicted for trafficking Cuban players. Now Gutierrez has changed agents again, joining The Legacy Agency.

Teams are expecting a showcase for him in the Miami area within the next few weeks, one they’re eager to see given talk that he may be back to his previous form or better. The Cubs, Dodgers and Giants have all been linked to Gutierrez.

8. Luis Yander La O, 3b/2b/ss

Bart Hernandez had been La O’s agent, but Hernandez was indicted for trafficking Cuban players. Then center fielder Guillermo Heredia, also represented by Hernandez, signed a contract for a reported $550,000 with the Mariners, a terrific bargain for Seattle even with the questions on Heredia’s bat. Now La O left Hernandez and is being represented by The Legacy Agency.

La O is a free agent exempt from the bonus pools, but his open showcase in Florida last month with Heredia didn’t go well, with bad weather and uninspiring showings from both players. So while La O could sign right now, he might have another showcase to give teams a more positive look at his skill set.

9. Yadiel Hernandez, of

Hernandez is a 28-year-old, lefthanded corner outfielder who hit .369/.509/.535 in 80 games in Serie Nacional in 2014-15, good for second in the league in batting average, OBP and walks (77) while striking out 44 times. Hernandez had his first open showcase in Mexico City on Feb. 23, with private workouts coming next. He has his residency in Mexico and is now waiting for MLB to declare him a free agent. Given MLB’s timetable with other Cuban players, he might get cleared to sign some time around Opening Day, then sign and join a team early in the 2016 season.

10. Adrian Morejon, lhp

Morejon just turned 17 last week, so while he’s very much a long-range projection, his talent level for his age is extremely high. Morejon was the MVP at the 15U World Cup in Mexico in 2014 and has only improved since then, with a fastball that sits in the low-90s and the potential for two above-average secondary pitches in his curveball and changeup. He has a smooth delivery and advanced feel for pitching, especially relative to the typical pitchers his age in the international free agent market. Morejon is the same age as Lazaro Armenteros, and the scouts I have asked have all preferred Morejon. He’s still not a free agent yet, but he is likely to wait to sign until July 2 anyway because the Padres are the favorites to land him.

11. Lazaro Armenteros, of

Armenteros has been the subject of some of the most extreme sensationalism in public reports, but he is among the more talented players in his age group on the international market. Armenteros is the same age as the top July 2 prospects who signed last year, and his talent level is right up there with the top players in the class, where the No. 1 ranked player, Blue Jays outfielder/third baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. signed for $3.9 million.

He has a promising combination of size (6-foot-1, 205 pounds), athleticism, above-average speed and power, most likely fitting as a corner outfielder, which is where he played in Cuba. He has a good track record of hitting in Cuba’s 15U national league and on their 15U youth national team, though it’s an unorthodox righthanded swing that has gotten even more uphill since he arrived in the Dominican Republic, perhaps in an attempt to try to show his power more in showcases.

After becoming a free agent, Armenteros has switched agents from Charles Hairston to Octagon. The Padres are now the favorites to sign Armenteros, though the Braves and Dodgers have also been connected to him as well.

12. Alfredo Rodriguez, ss

Since November, the Reds have been linked to Rodriguez as the heavy favorites to sign him. On the day Rodriguez was declared a free agent in January, MLB.com reported that he had a $6 million agreement to sign with the Reds. Multiple sources confirmed that report, saying that Rodriguez would be signing with the Reds during the current 2015-16 signing period rather than waiting until July 2 to sign. That would have been a costly price for the Reds to pay, not only because of Rodriguez’s suspect bat but because the Reds would be limited to signings of no more than $300,000 beginning July 2 when they have the second-biggest international bonus pool.

Now it appears the Reds have changed course and will instead convince Rodriguez to wait until July 2 to officially sign his contract, putting him under the 2016-17 pools and allowing them to have a full year to attack the international market. In exchange for waiting, the Reds might end up paying Rodriguez an even higher bonus.

13. Ronald Bolanos, rhp

Bart Hernandez, who has already lost Gutierrez and La O as clients, is the agent for Bolanos, so what’s going to happen next with Bolanos isn’t clear. Bolanos is one of the more promising pool-eligible pitchers though. In Cuba, Bolanos came up through the junior leagues as an outfielder, but he moved to the mound full-time in 2014 and made a quick transition, pitching in the COPABE 18U Pan American Championship that summer where he threw nine scoreless innings with a team-high 15 strikeouts and six walks. At the time, his fastball ranged from 88-93 mph while flashing an above-average though inconsistent slider. Since then, his fastball has increased to sitting consistently in the low-90s and reaching 95 mph.

14. Jonatan Machado, of

Machado is a free agent, though it appears likely that he will wait until July 2 and then sign with the Cardinals, presuming the Cardinals aren’t prevented from doing so as a result of any possible penalties from the commissioner’s office stemming from former scouting director Chris Correa pleading guilty to hacking the Astros’ information systems. Machado has a small frame at 5-foot-9, 160 pounds and there’s an arm bar that adds length to his lefthanded swing, but he seldom swings and misses and has excellent speed to play in center field.

15. Cionel Perez, lhp

Perez, 19, was in the Dominican Republic, but he is now training in the Bahamas with Norge Ruiz waiting for MLB to make him a free agent. In Cuba, Perez was one of the better starting pitchers in Serie Nacional, posting a 2.06 ERA with a 75-32 K-BB mark in 87 1/3 innings during the 2014-15 season. He was an athletic but small-framed lefty with a lively low-90s fastball that could touch 94 mph and a slurvy breaking stuff, so I think he would be a better fit in the bullpen, though there are scouts who like him more because of his athleticism, arm speed and belief that his secondary pitches will progress.