Charles Hairston, the agent for 16-year-old Cuban prospect Lazaro Armenteros (also the cousin of former Major Leaguers Scott Hairston and Jerry Hairston Jr.), tells MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez that his client is not close to a decision (links to Sanchez on Twitter). While multiple reports earlier this week suggested that “Lazarito” was weighing offers and would decide on a team, Hairston tells Sanchez that new teams have entered the mix in the event that Lazarito waits to sign until the 2016-17 international signing period begins on July 2. He’s also still considering signing with a team during the current period, though. “For a 16 year-old, it’s easy to want to just play ball,” said Hairston. “But he wants to do what’s best for his family. He’s being very mature.”
Waiting until July 2, notably, would eliminate multiple teams from the mix, including the Dodgers, Cubs, Royals and Giants. Those four clubs have vastly exceeded their 2015-16 international pools and would, thus, be ineligible to sign a player for more than $300K in the two forthcoming signing periods. Waiting until the next period would also open the door for clubs like the Braves, Phillies, Padres and Cardinals — each of whom is said to be preparing to be aggressive on the international front in the 2016-17 period.
Lazarito himself told Sanchez recently that he hoped to make a decision this week — possibly by Wednesday — but clearly the timeline has skewed somewhat. While it’s not entirely clear that Lazarito will wait until the 2016-17 period to sign, the fact that his agent has referenced new entrants in the July 2 scene and indefinitely delayed the decision certainly lends credence to that possibility. Sanchez had previously reported that the Dodgers, Cubs, Braves, Phillies and Padres were all in the mix for Lazarito, so waiting until July 2 would bode well for any of the latter three teams. Of course, it’s also possible that a yet-unreported club has made a compelling offer to Lazarito’s camp; as many as nine clubs were said to have serious interest at one point, and others seem to have entered the mix.
Armenteros has been working out for teams as a center fielder and drawn praise for his power, speed and athleticism, although at 6’2″ and 205 pounds as 16-year-old, some scouts reportedly believe that he’ll have to settle into an outfield corner down the line. Sanchez recently ranked him among the top international free agents (those who qualify as amateurs, that is) and provided a free scouting report. Baseball America’s Ben Badler recently profiled him and provided a highlight video, also going a bit further in-depth for BA subscribers (a highly recommended route for those interested in the international prospect scene).
C’mon ATL.
He’s probably 19
In Cuba you can’t lie about your age. The government controls every part of you. His age is legit. He has to do forced military tasks from age 18-21. The government knows what age these guys are
Yeah, that’s how Cuba works., especially with athletes. LoL
Wow ignorance is truly bliss. Cuba doesn’t want the players to leave so obviously they would do anything to stop them from getting paid. So that’s a dumb comment
Why not?
Seems a reasonably good option, if the Benjamins are right. I’m resigned to my Cubs not getting him, though having a Hairston put on the brakes is a good thing, from my perspective.
whoever he picks, he’s going to rip a team off.
He’s not the best intl prospect ever (worse than Kevin Maitan) and is asking for nearly 4 or 5 times the money.
If he was from Venezuela or any other country, he’d be getting somewhere near $3-4 million, not $15-20 million
It depends on if he’s going to be good enough in the future. When my Cubs signed Gleyber Torres, they “ripped him off” due to the structure in place.
Wins-above will soon be about ten per. If Lazarito ends up a five win player, he’ll be worth what he was offered. If not, not so much.
In consenting relationships, it’s possible for an equitable deal.
Maybe its me but something seems inherently wrong with MLB teams looking to make a deal and sign a 16 year old. In the US, you have to be 18 to legally sign a contract. I realize baseball is approached differently in Latin American countries but c’mon. Am I missing something here?
If you keep players from Latin America from signing until they are 18, they won’t play against US competition until they are 20, likely. They begin an often six-year sojourn to (potentially) the majors at a later age. It certainly won’t help them get better.
Whether that’s good or bad is up for discussion, I guess, but the sooner players get quality coaching, coaching that is player-first, is time wasted.
As to limiting signing bonuses, there are ways that will likely be explored for the upcoming CBA. .
Get a new agent. Dodgers Cubs and giants big players with deep pockets. Can’t imagine waiting past July 2 and lose them as options. Maybe using it as a scare tactic to fight each other for him !
? Not !
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Looks to me like a ploy to drive up the cost a little further on the Dodgers,Cubs,Royals etc.