July 2, 2019 International Signing Period

[bkeich]

I assume our class is Yhoswar Garcia, 4 or 5 prospects in the $200K-$350K range (Jean Hernandez, Randy Vasquez, Jackie Pertuz, Jeibert Silva), and then another dozen nominal signings.

Am I the only one that is underwhelmed by the fact that the only big ticket item was someone who was trying to commit fraud and got caught?

At some point our international signings has to produce someone of note. I think Ruiz is still the last All-Star or even really solid starter. We once again have some maybes and a herd of bullpen arms from our International signings, but zero guys that are anything more than hope. Sanchez was of course a strong candidate, but he faded badly and was included in a trade.

[andyb]

On the surface it does not look good to spend $2.5 million on a guy a year older than advertised. I feel we should have been able to come to agreement for a discount. We should keep an open mind of course. Maybe the team really did identify a prospect worth the money.

I am a little annoyed our overall spending decreased. We did not try to increase our pool this year. It is more expensive to do so without teams in the penalty, but starting out $500K short meant we should have really tried harder.

[allentown]

Am I the only one that is underwhelmed by the fact that the only big ticket item was someone who was trying to commit fraud and got caught?

At some point our international signings has to produce someone of note

I'm very disappointed by our international program in general and this season's signings in particular. Always a great moment when almost all your $ go to such a high character guy. Maybe it works out, but to me it has the smell of face saving. Can't help but think of the two Koreans, who apparently scammed us out of, what translated into today's international budget, must have been equivalent $20 million. As with the Koreans: awful to be duped, worse to just plow ahead with the bad deal. I really hope I'm wrong about this.

[Squire]

I mean...none of us really know the circumstances behind the fraudulent age thing. If when you were 5 years old, your parents told you were actually 4 you would believe them. Its conceivable this was planned when the kid was a toddler, and he was not aware that he was in fact a year older. Phillies should have renegotiated but they never do that so I'm not surprised that they figured it wasn't worth it with regard to their attractiveness to the buscones.

[zambonir]

Yeah I would not put any blame for this stuff on the player. If anything, it reflects badly on the Phillies for what it says about their relationship with the buscones, even if that doesn't make them any different from any other team. Heck, for all we know, someone in the organization may have known about it.

[fish]

Can't help but think of the two Koreans, who apparently scammed us out of, what translated into today's international budget, must have been equivalent $20 million.

I don’t recall that being a scam, but more the work of one awful scout who sold the Phillies on signing them. If you told me he got a kickback on those deals I would not be shocked.

[allentown]

I remember a comment in the press from someone in the scouting department on the day that the Koreans got off the plane in America, that they didn't look like the guys we had signed.

[California_Dreamin]

allentown...I remember that also. IIRC, one of the pitchers was very short and other looked like he weighed 250 pounds...and not in a good way. I recall trying to be very optimistic, as in that the Phillies were ahead of the game in the procuring of Asian talent. I soon realized that it was merely the opposite, the Phils had been had.

Its almost funny, in a painful sort of way, that for the greater part of this decade we [yours truly is a charter member!] have been touting Uncle Sal as the indispensable guy in the organization, and even people like Salisbury have bought the bait. Yet, he has produced very little and I am very much in doubt about his "strength in numbers" philosophy which says give me 10 guys at $50,000 vs 1 guy at $500,000. He is a huge proponent of that and I have often wondered if this is an indelible weakness based on his affinity for these youngsters and his desire to potentially get them out of poverty and into the states.

Whatever his reasoning it hasn't worked and this Uncle Sal routine has kind of grown old with me. That said, he had nothing to do with the two Korean hurler signings, just more a general painting of a canvas Internationally that has been one of the organizations major weaknesses.

[allentown]

his "strength in numbers" philosophy which says give me 10 guys at $50,000 vs 1 guy at $500,000.

I don't object to the 10 guys for $50K approach, that buys 10 lottery tickets who impressed Sal and his scouts, and barely dents our international budget. The numbers approach has a cap now, with the shrinking of MiLB. Where my real gripe is is the poor judgment on the big $ signings, which are a significant portion of our international budget. As with first round draft picks, if you consistently get those wrong, you can't succeed, even if you are above average in the later rounds. Signing a wrong-age guy, the outright $1 million Encarnacion bust -- and $1 million was significant $ that year, the looking like a $4 million misspend on Ortiz. Those are the signings that kill. Without them, the numbers approach could have been 16 guys at $250K the year we popped Ortiz. Aa with Moniak, Randolph, LGJ -- when there are serious problems with the guy everyone in the organization has a total crush on and you spend $multi-millions on has big holes or is a complete no talent, that is sign of MAJOR organizational problems. I have been a lot happier with our recent #1 draft picks, but those major miscues are why I'm ok with picking the best H.S. pitcher in round #1, but shudder when the Phillies consider a H.S. position player in that spot. I'm just not sure the Phillies organization has fixed the development/scouting/GM office problems which have led to so many failures with H.S. position player picks. Either we can't judge H.S. talent (as with Hewitt, didn't correct enough for age, NE H.S.) or we don't know how to teach them to hit. It's been and organizational issue. Also no evidence we can intelligently identify and develop Latin American position talent --- not a surprise, they are even younger. We do better judging college kids and better with pitchers. The Phillies have compensated for, rather than shown they have fixed, the problem with H.S. position players, by avoiding them. We continue to spend the bulk of our international $ on position players and that hasn't worked for us. Not a glimmer of a sign yet that our talent evaluation and development deficiencies in this regard have been fixed.

[allentown]

I mean...none of us really know the circumstances behind the fraudulent age thing. If when you were 5 years old, your parents told you were actually 4 you would believe them. Its conceivable this was planned when the kid was a toddler, and he was not aware that he was in fact a year older.

Given the economic plight of the D.R. and baseball being the path to success, this is actually a logical possibility. Still, viscerally, it reminds me of the GOP nonsense that somehow baby Obama's family had the foresight to get a false date of birth announcement in a Hawaii newspaper and a birth certificate to the state. Strains credulity.

[Austinfan]

The numbers thing has worked very well with LA pitchers, we've found a bunch of low cost arms that panned out.
It's the high cost position players, as you point out, that have killed us.

[andyb]

Still a trickle of signings coming in for the previous period. No idea if we have any pool left. Mets signed some 21-year-old who now is hitting triple digits:

Mets sign Venezuelan pitcher Richard Brito who can throw 100 mph

[andyb]

No idea if we have any pool room left or willingness to spend, but the 2019 international period is now close to ending on 10/15. 2 weeks left.

The next period will not start till January 15, 2021. It does look like international periods from 1/15 to 12/15 is the new standard though eligibility ages are likely the same. Age 16 by 8/30 of the previous year. In essence it pushes the signing age back to 16 1/2.

[andyb]

Top South Korean SS to be posted this winter. He'll be 25 so just a regular free agent with additional posting fee. Might be a less expensive alternative to Didi.

Ha-Seong Kim, Top Ranked Player In Korea, To Be Posted After Season

Scouting Report: Kiwoom Heroes SS Kim Ha-seong #1 - Prospects Worldwide

[bigegypt0417]

Seems like someone we would have interest in...25 years old and his scouting report is really interesting.

[andyb]

Small international note. The Taiwanese pitcher the Phillies had been linked to more than a year ago signed with the Pirates for $1.25 million. I don't think the Phillies had that much pool space available, especially after they did not get a discount on Yhoswar Garcia. Ironic note - seems like a decade ago, but the Phillies did send an international slot to the Pirates in the Corey Dickerson deal.

Period ends 10/15 (Thursday). Not expecting much on the Phillies end, but hopefully they at least spend whatever pool room they have available.

Pirates make international splash by signing Taiwanese pitcher Po-Yu Chen

[andyb]

And to put a bow on the 2019-2020 period, it does appear that the Phillies spent their entire pool (which was $4.8 million to start after losing $500K on (edit - Bryce Harper) and then decreased by one traded $250K slot). We signed 35 total players with the big bonuses being Yhoswar Garcia ($2.5 million) and then:

shortstop Randy Vasquez ($350,000)
right-handed pitcher Jean Hernandez ($300,000)
infielder Jehisbert Sevilla ($275,000)
catchers Jose Colmenarez ($250,000) and Jackie Pertuz ($200,000)

All of those bonuses are listed at the front though Colmenarez may be $100K less. And the article does not mention Fernando Hernandez who was another $350K bonus. Julio's list back in February had 34 names so we are missing one somewhere. I think we were 27th in spending. Atlanta had zero pool and the White Sox and Nats lost more slots through trades or signings.

One more bonus mentioned elsewhere was $210K for the Italian kid (Samuel Aldegheri)

Team Italy pitcher Samuel Aldegheri signed by Philadelphia Phillies

All 30 clubs' 2019-20 international signings

On to the next pool (starting January 15, 2021).

[andyb]

Aldegheri actually played a little Italian league baseball this summer for Parma:
http://www.parmabaseball.it/statistiche.html

[bkeich]

Gee, I wonder why the minor leagues are ranked near the bottom. 27th in spending clearly helps. Selling allotment.

[zambonir]

Well, you wouldn't expect a team with playoff ambitions to have a high pool amount, and we spent 100% of it. The problem is the lost pool $ (and the lost draft picks) haven't produced any actual major league success and the period when they did have a high pool amount got squandered (both talent-wise and $-wise).

The 250 was Corey Dickerson?