9:31pm: Coppolella and the Braves allegedly agreed to a deal this summer with 14-year-old Haitian Dominican shortstop prospect Robert Puason, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. As Rosenthal points out, Puason isn’t eligible to sign until he’s 16, so the Braves are in violation if they did indeed reach an agreement with him. But the league is also investigating other teams for agreeing to sign underage prospects, per Rosenthal. One international scouting director informed him that up to 15 clubs have reached deals with players who, like Puason, aren’t allowed to sign until 2019. Keith Law of ESPN adds (on Twitter) that there are some prospects who can’t sign until 2020 but already have verbal agreements with teams. The current international setup has led to frustration from baseball officials, meaning there will be another attempt to institute a worldwide draft after the collective bargaining agreement expires in 2021, Rosenthal writes.
As for Maitan, Rosenthal relays that MLB hasn’t found any improprieties in his signing to this point, though that could change.
6:19pm: As part of its investigation into ousted Braves general manager John Coppolella’s alleged violations of its international rules, Major League Baseball is looking into the team’s 2016 signing of prospect Kevin Maitan, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reports in a must-read piece. In what would be a stunning development, MLB could declare the 17-year-old Maitan a free agent if it finds improprieties in the signing, according to Passan.
The Coppolella-led Braves inked the Venezuelan-born Maitan to a $4.25MM bonus at the outset of last year’s international free agent period. Maitan was the top free agent in the 2016 class and drew comparisons to Braves legend Chipper Jones, Miguel Cabrera and Miguel Sano at the time of his signing. In the months before Maitan joined the Braves, he lived in a two-bedroom apartment in Florida for “a significant amount of time” with another teenage prospect who also signed with the team, Passan details. It’s unclear, though, whether the Braves funded the prospects’ stay in the U.S., Passan adds.
In 2017, his first season in the Atlanta organization, the switch-hitting Maitan played shortstop at the rookie level and slashed .241/.290/.340 with two home runs in 176 plate appearances. MLB.com ranks him as the No. 5 prospect in the Braves’ deep farm system and the 38th-best youngster in the game. Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs (No. 67) and Baseball America (No. 71) also regard Maitan as a top 75 prospect.
Coppollela may have skirted regulations when signing Maitan, but it seems he also disregarded MLB’s rules domestically. In August 2016, for instance, Coppolella allegedly contacted the representative for an impending free agent wanting to discuss the player well before the market opened in November, which would have violated tampering rules, per Passan. Additionally, Passan explains that Coppolella is alleged to have offered 2017 second-round pick Drew Waters a car in order to get him to sign a below-slot deal. The Braves signed the 18-year-old outfielder to a $1.5MM bonus that came in under the $1.675MM slot value of Waters’ pick, No. 41 overall, but his agent, Keith Grunewald, told sources Passan spoke with that Coppolella’s car offer was only made as a joke. Coppolella met with MLB officials in New York last week to discuss the accusations against him, Passan relays.
While it appears MLB could seriously punish the Braves for their actions under Coppollela, his career in the game may be over. Coppolella’s methods in Atlanta did not win him many fans among either his peers around the league or fellow members of the Braves’ front office, Passan writes. One high-ranking Braves official revealed to Passan that things became toxic with Coppolella around, saying last week that “this place is totally [expletive] up. I just hope when it blows up, it doesn’t take all of us down.”
Are you kidding me? This is just getting worse and worse
Well this could be huge… not every day a top 30 prospects hits the FA market unrestricted.
You got that right!
First of all, for those of you who don’t know, if they agreed early, it was done before Coppolella ever knew. So by the time it gets to the Gm, it is too late.
That will never happen. MLB in New York understand their mission and freeing Kevin Maitan to get paid what he’s worth is the opposite of that mission.
You have no clue, their mission? Who Kim? Who Joe? Wake up, they have no clue, and that’s why the rules have been broken for 25 years
Go get em Cop…oh wait.
I wonder what they can be investigating… They weren’t in the penalty box at the time, so they could give him as much as they wanted. Can’t be because they made a deal ahead of time, or they would have to make vlad Jr a free agent too, cause the Jay’s had a deal with him in place years before he became eligible
Good! Karma.
Which teams have money to sign this kid?
Karma for what exactly?
For ruining the Braves organization because he couldn’t play by the rules. The high-ranking official’s quote said it all: “This place is totally [expletive] up. I just hope when it blows up, it doesn’t take all of us down.”
Thank you “Coppy”.
Maitan can still have a successful Major League career, but it’ll be the first of many steps in granting him free agency to make the Braves (on Coppollela’s behalf) pay for what he did.
Always knew I didn’t like him (just a feeling), and now I know why. Sometimes gut feelings turn out to be true; there’s no magical sabermetric formula for some things in life. The sooner everybody remembers that, the better.
You do realize that half the other clubs are under investigation for the same thing for that particular part of his “wrong doings”, which also haven’t been proven at this time. So far, most of the reporting hasn’t been 100% confirmed.
And if this action is what you’re calling Karma, then that would apply to the other teams that are doing it as well, not just the Braves.
I suppose “it hasn’t been 100% confirmed” is fair enough at the moment, but WHATEVER it was it was both serious and compelling enough for the Braves to force him out.
We may not have all the details, but it’s not like this investigation is going to end with “everything’s fine, we’re good here.”
Not compelling at all.
What is and is not a serious offense depends 100% on the owner. Coppy would still be employed if this were the Red Sox because John Henry cares about winning, not what the overall profit margin of MLB teams is this year or next.
For winning a World Series 22 years ago, I guess?
Say it aint so
If Maitan becomes a free agent, this could be the most interesting offseason in years with Otani likely coming over
The kid is years away,so how would be an impact like Otani?
*he be
Otani, can’t even stay healthy in Japan against 3A talent, don’t make him Babe Ruth
Wasn’t saying he’s Babe Ruth,just saying he’s more of a factor to teams then some 17 year old prospect..
With both available a team that has a good owner like the Red Sox would put on the Tom Cruise “Risky Business” shades…….”Sometimes you just have to say WTF”
Rather ironic that you bring up the last team that lost players due to international wrongdoing as a “good owner.”
Rick Hahn must look like General Grievous right now
Hahn is not so innocent. Someone in the white sox org was siphoning off money in Latiin America under Hahn.
Hahn was only assistant GM Kenny was still top dog at that time
Yeah, it’s called the clown from Cal, and they all knew
Here comes the judge
Would he be unrestricted
Yes. He gets to keep the Braves’ bonus money and would be free to sign with another team.
So we might figure out what the actual dollar sign on the muscle is
Maitan is a 17 year old who struggled in rookie ball. Few 17 year olds play rookie ball, so that’s not discouraging, but it also means that Maitan is far away from the big leagues and just projectable at this point.
When the Boston players were declared free agents, they were subject to the same international bonus rules as any other player. No team has more than $3-$3.5 million left in international bonus money. So that’s the maximum he could get.
Never was much of a fan of the Braves but I feel bad for Braves fans. It sucks to have some (allegedly) unethical guy eff up their franchise.
Wait a minute. No one felt bad for cardinals when they had one unethical guy eff up? So why feel bad for braves? Wtf is the difference here? Except I’d say it’s worse because GM is much higher in ranks then loser that hacked ‘stros
They’re both cheaters…. but coppolella broke the rules. Correa broke the law and it’s very unlikely that no one else in the cards FO didn’t know about it
Yes, Correa screwed up even worse, but all the evidence points to him having acted alone.
I’m not going to lie, I forget a lot of the information about that case. But I’m almost positive that he testified in court that others in the St Louis FO knew he was accessing Houston’s database. I don’t know who, but he admitted others knew
The difference is that baseball has turned the GM from Houston into a hero, and the Braves GM into a crook, Houston had Correa signed to a deal before the draft, check it out
key word: draft.
They had him signed before the draft? Source?
Teams that pick towards the top gauge if they can get one of the top talents on at slot or under-slot. Especially the team with #1 pick.
That is NOT the same thing as having someone signed before the draft.
It’s no longer “alleged”. He wouldn’t be fired if it’s “alleged”. He’s as crooked as they come.
He resigned, wasn;t fired. And we use “alleged” because what exactly he did is still unclear and just speculation
The question is, if Maitan becomes FA, are Braves allowed to negotiate a contract with Maitan?
If it’s anything like what happened with the red Sox, no
Correct. They’d be barred from spending internationally all together. That would include him.
Well there are some rules. I think if a player is over 23 or 24 then the Braves could sign him if hit with a ban.
This kid is going to get at least 50 million if he hits free agency. But MLB might restrict the amount you can spend on him
My guess is they’d have teams treat him like an international free agent.
can you elaborate on this?
he played in rookie ball in Florida, so he’s not technically coming over as an international free agent. why wouldn’t they just treat him like a UFA?
Because someone might give Maitan $75 million.
Have you forgotten Yoan Moncada?
Yoan didn’t even get half of 75M
Yeah, overrated, in the meantime Sale is taking Bos. To the postseason
And moncada will likely take Chicago to the postseason in a few years lol. That’s how trades are supposed to work
Yet they rarely do.
$63 million is a lot more than half of $75mil. Now I see where the down votes are coming from.
Clueless, only LA spends 50 million on that, come back to earth!
Teams shell out big money to international players all the time that are risky. Your telling me one thats already a blue chip prospect wont? Your the clueless one
He isn’t already anything. All he’s done apart from an unsigned 16-year-old is have a terrible year in rookie ball.
Thats the whole point. None of these international signings have done anything. Teams arent afraid to pay them
Sure, but a few million, not 50 million.
Any idea when the verdict will come?
On Maitan’s free agency, or when Coppolella is prosecuted?
Maitan’s free agency
Latest report looks like loss of draft picks or IFA money or both. Maitan looks like he is going to stay with the Braves unless they find evidence prior to him turning 16.
Interesting stuff. If even half of this holds up as true, it’s a sign that there was some pretty systematic rule breaking going on. By all accounts he’s a nice guy, but this is some very dodgy stuff.
Between this issue and the NCAA scandal that’s come up, the whistle is certainly being blown on corruption in sport. One fears that this is just the tip of the iceberg though.
Dang, this could be -really- bad for the Braves as each blatant rule violation may be treated seperate as far as punishment.
They lose International rights based off the main thrust, plus take punishment for collusion and tampering and such on top of it, plus who knows what all this guy did… could be kind of devastating in the end
Give us Gohara back and you can keep Maitan. We probably won’t sign him anyway. If we do Dipoto will trade him away before he sees the majors. I wonder if he went to see Otani with real interest or just a trip to Japan? He could be wondering how many trades he could turn him into. He could get 5 guys that he could turn to 10 etc.
Were you trying to be funny? This is an article about the Braves, not the Mariners. And this article also has nothing to do with Otani, it’s about Maitan. And Dipoto doesn’t just make trades for fun, he does them to attempt to make the team better and to please fans like you that are always going to find something to be negative about.
Now I’m wondering, are there any other players that he broke the rules with that can become free agents?
Why does everyone seem to hate Jerry, he inherited an awful situation with a nearly bare farm system and he has, in my opinion, strengthened the system while keeping to team in contention and making the team younger. If he makes a lot of trades to do that, it’s fine with me
You had Him, and could not help him, go back to sleep!
Wilson Betemit
So Coppy’s (short) “legacy” in Atlanta will be this mess AND the head scratcher of a trade for Olivera. Brutal. If it weren’t for the Shelby Miller trade, i don’t think the guy would make it out of Atlanta alive.
He’s done way more than just the 2 big trades you’re only selectively remembering
Simmons?
Biggest trade was not selling high on JT.
I’m aware, and i agree he made some savvy baseball moves in his short time at the helm. But I am referring to the things he will be most remembered for (read: “legacy.”)
Time for Rick Hahn to swipe in
Yeah, Right! What has he ever done?
If he’s found guilty , Punish the Braves Organization with a Heavy Fine and lost of Draft Picks , Make them and their actions a example to others if are of the Same mind !
Say :Yankees and Red Sox
William, draft picks & Int. Signings don’t coincide.
Unless it turns out they ry did offer Drew waters a car to sign a below slot deal. Man, Coppy screwed this franchise over. I hope he gets banned from baseball for life
I don’t think it’s what Coppy did that brought him down, it’s how he related to people. It’s one thing for other teams to not like him, but for people in the Braves organization to despise Coppy says a lot.
He sounds like Sheen on Wall Street, too hot too quick.
To an extent,
– quote
Jeff Passan ✔@JeffPassan
Early on in investigation, little evidence had been found to corroborate a number of accusations levied against Coppolella, per sources.
Jeff Passan ✔@JeffPassan
MLB was looking into everything from Braves’ int’l operations to its domestic draft to Coppolella’s treatment of Braves employees
– end quote
That kind of implies Braves employees were dropping dimes left and right on him, up to and including his mistreating of them.
…but, he had to have at least partially done those things for the dimes to be dropped and taken seriously as accusations, lest the accusations bring the accusing down instead.
Also heard rumor there might have been involvement with Latin mobs, so his issues might extend past just being a horrible boss and skirting baseball rules, moving even into some real legal messes too
Very interesting though, I just read an article recently that was saying teams got these kids locked up already prior to the signing.. words from a few GMs. I get a scout checks out some kid before his due time, seeing what he gots/what he could have, but staying completely away from those kids.
I support an international draft.
Exactly. Make an international draft and it will do away with all of these issues.
The NHL and NBA manage to have both domestic and international players in the same draft AND wait until they are 18 and 19 (respectively) to draft them.
Who but MLB allows 16 year olds to sign contracts?
This article makes it seem like some of them are trying to verbally sign 13 year olds. That’s crazy.
Close, half the teams in the league have had deals with 14 year olds.
Vlad Jr had an agreement in place with the blue Jay’s years before he signed
As Ben Badler has noted numerous times in public forms, this is common practice in MLB.
Well duh, dozens of guys are signed the first day of the signing period. They all didn’t just suddenly agree to deals at the same time
Dozens of guys who are eligible agree to a contract before Day 1, but ineligible…
At least we can all agree it’s awesome that we don’t have to Braves fans call this a**hole “Coppy” like he’s their best friend anymore…
Sure every Braves fan refers to him as “Coppy” because they think he’s their best friend. Couldn’t possibly have anything to do with the fact that it’s just easier to write out than “Coppollela”.
Maybe we should hound them for calling Foltynewicz “Folty” from now on?
Haha nice
Totally unethical to make agreements with kids who are 13-14 years old, they have no way to comprehend what is going on. They should just have an international draft, or combine it with the rule 4. It’s not fair to college/high school players who get drafted but have to take smaller salaries while international players can get signed at 16 and collect large bonuses. I’m not singling out the Braves by the way, this applies to every team and GM.
This year’s rule 4 draft had 11 players sign for $4+ million and 19 sign for $3+ million. Compare that to J2 international period where only 3 players signed for $3+ million and none for more than $3.825 million. It’s pretty obvious that the international players aren’t collecting larger bonuses or taking money away from the US kids.
I’m talking about guys like Moncada, Castillo, etc.
Moncada and Castillo are Cubans, and at the time of their signings they were not under the same restrictions as Rule 4 draftees
Well it’s changed now and the spending on amateurs is limited. Prior though when guys like Moncada and Robert signed for a ton of money, it was ridiculous. Have an international draft or combine it with the Rule 4 draft and you don’t have kids making agreements at the age of 13/14.
Braves could trade for Stanton by sendingPache,I.Anderson and Kemp then trade for Archer by sending M.Adams,Muller,Wisler and Blair.
Neither of those are even close
Sports at all levels is corrupt to the core. Even high school programs and those for younger kids all the way to the professionals.. Remember, winning is ALL that matters.