Cuban right-hander Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez has been drawing attention from scouts for months now, and the 26-year-old is getting closer to signing. MLB.com's Jesse Sanchez reports that Gonzalez's selection is down to just five teams, and he could sign a deal within the next couple of days. According to Sanchez, the price for Gonzalez has gone up, and the number of interested teams has gone down (Twitter links).
Last Thursday, Gonzalez's agent, Jaime Torres, told reporters that he hoped to have a deal in place sometime this week. At that time, the Dodgers, Cubs, Rangers, Red Sox, Phillies, Blue Jays, Braves, Twins, Yankees and Marlins had all shown interest in Gonzalez, though the Twins and Marlins were thought to be long-shots due to Gonzalez's price tag.
Earlier today, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com tweeted that the Orioles scouted Gonzalez heavily but aren't expected to outbid the other interested parties. Similarly, Mike DiGiovanna of the L.A. Times tweeted that the Angels have scouted Gonzalez but aren't heavily involved in bidding for his services. According to weekend reports, the Dodgers are prepared to offer Gonzalez as much as $50MM over five years.
