International Signings

by Scrupio on Oct 12, 2008 10:32 PM PDT

There hasn't been a whole lot of talk about the Mariners lately other than the whole GM search. So something I'm interested in is how we did in the international signing period. Did Bob Engle pull any rabbits out of his hat this year? As far as the best player available the Athletics gave their left testicle for Michel Inoa giving him $4.25 mil. I see we got a pretty highly rated outfielder named Julio Morban and a highly rated pitcher from Nicaragua named Francisco Valdivia. Both are 16 years old. Many sources are saying Morban got a $1.1-1.2 mil bonus. Other than them its hard to find any info on any other signings, anyone have info on any others? I know some of you know a hell of a lot more than I do. Engle made two big signings last year in Jharmidy DeJesus and Gabriel Noriega. I wonder if thats his strategy. Hopefully we'll see a few of these players come up through the minors in the next couple years.

Press release from Mariners with quotes from Engle on each player

ESPN had this to say about Morban and Valdivia:

Morban can play anywhere in the outfield, but his good defense and arm belong in center field. He is not too big (5-11, 178) but has speed on the base paths and swings an occasionally powerful bat. Morban bats from the left side and has a strong grasp of the game.

Valdivia has a nice build (6-3, 185) but needs to work on his mechanics, something that is not surprising if we take into account that he turned 16 in March. Valdivia pitches with a three-quarter arm slot, and his fastball reaches 91 mph.

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Morban sounds intriguing.

Anyone have more information o him?

by BrianL on Oct 12, 2008 10:45 PM PDT 0 recs

Give Churchill another couple of weeks...

…I hear the re-born Prospect Insider is just around the corner.

This signature space for rent.

by PositivePaul on Oct 12, 2008 10:49 PM PDT up 0 recs

I can't wait for my copy of the 2009 PI handbook.

by BrianL on Oct 12, 2008 11:13 PM PDT up 0 recs

Oooh! Do tell!

The road to hell is paved with Mariners.

by Taylor H on Oct 13, 2008 9:34 AM PDT up 0 recs

Last I heard this morning...

…was that PI might return as early as late next week.

I’m going to work with Churchill on some of the final design stuff…

This signature space for rent.

by PositivePaul on Oct 13, 2008 3:57 PM PDT up 0 recs

Jason seemed really sad a while ago.

I’m glad he’s back in business!

The road to hell is paved with Mariners.

by Taylor H on Oct 13, 2008 6:06 PM PDT up 0 recs

Old news.

I thought there was a new release…

Morban is a left-handed hitter, solid all-around player who is likely to stay in center. Scouts have praised his bat work, but compared to the other outfielders of this period, he’s not as big and some aren’t convinced that he’ll be hitting for as much power as them.

Valdivia fits the mold of the M’s going to places that aren’t scouted as heavily and picking up equivalent players for less money. Juan Ramirez is the easy comparison off-hand, they’re both Nicaraguans, both deals compared to what a Dominican or Venezuelan might get, and both mechanically raw, not that I know a thing about his secondary offerings, and Ramirez had that breaking pitch from the get go.

Both guys are probably going to be in the U.S. next year, they’re both in instructs right now.

Baseball America is going to run out a list of AL West international signings within the next couple of weeks. We’ll get more than, but I remember seeing one name in the instructs list that I’d never encountered before and there may be another who was in the top 20 bonuses for the period. Check back then.

"Ever tried? Ever failed? No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better." - Samuel Beckett http://mvn.com/milb-mariners/

by JY on Oct 13, 2008 6:18 AM PDT 0 recs

Also

Efrain Nunez was a pretty big Engle signing from last year as well, and he’ll be hitting the states next year.

So from the 07 crop, you have Noriega, de Jesus, Nunez, and the pitching duo of Kenta Suda and Yao-wen Chang, who both pitched far below their reputation this year. Regardless, that was a pretty solid group. Don’t anyone go asking how to rank this group until we know all of the players involved. The M’s may compensate for not signing number one and picks nine through eleven by investing more money internationally somewhere. That could change things in a hurry.

"Ever tried? Ever failed? No matter. Try again. Fail again. Fail better." - Samuel Beckett http://mvn.com/milb-mariners/

by JY on Oct 13, 2008 7:13 AM PDT up 0 recs

Sorry that this is old news

But it didn’t seem to get a whole lot of publicity around here and thought people might be interested. Thanks for the bit of insight on the players. Does anyone have a subscription to BA? Is it worth it?

by Scrupio on Oct 13, 2008 3:11 PM PDT up 0 recs

Morban

I have read a few positive reviews of Morban, and it will be interesting to see what BA says about him when their AL West review comes out.

The main point I found in the various scouting reports of Morban that aren’t really mentioned much in the reports above was his polish. He lacks the tools of the two Rodriguez OF’s in this int’l crop, but he is far more polished as a hitter. Both Yorman and Rafael Rodriguez are toolsy guys with major questions about whether they will hit. Morban lacks their raw tools, but is described as a far more advanced hitter. He sounds like a much better bet to not completely flame out like the Rodriguez’s, but his ceiling isn’t likely quite as high.

He sounds like a great signing. In fact, the initial reports on him sound sorta like what people said about Triunfel a few years ago. People rave about his hitting ability more than natural tools. Sorta like a poor man’s Triunfel. As a lefty bat who most think can stick in CF, that sounds like a good prospect.

by Jerry on Oct 13, 2008 8:31 AM PDT 0 recs