With less than two weeks until the 2014-15 international signing period is set to begin July 2 (J2), teams are currently doing everything in their power to reach an agreement with one (or in some cases many) of the top amateur prospects in this year’s class.
Last year, both the Chicago Cubs and Texas Rangers willingly exceeded their respective bonus pools in order to sign some of the best-available talent. This time around, the New York Yankees are preparing to take things to a new level.
Back in December, Kiley McDaniel of Scouting Baseball (subscription required) broke news of the Yankees’ plan to essentially ignore international spending restrictions and sign roughly six players for a total of $12 million. (For reference, they have an assigned bonus pool of $2.191 million.) His latest update on the Yankees’ strategy has them signing up to two additional players and spending nearly $15 million. Either way, the Bronx Bombers are preparing to turn the international spending system on its head on July 2—and they aren’t the only ones.
According to Ben Badler of Baseball America (subscription required), both the Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox are expected to spend beyond their bonus pools this year and pay the maximum fine for doing so. Meanwhile, the Milwaukee Brewers also are believed to be willing to go beyond their allotted pool money in the 2014-15 signing period.
In terms of available talent, this year’s international class is loaded with potential high-ceiling hitters, many of whom project to play an up-the-middle position at the next level, as well as several notable arms.
Here is a look at the top 20 prospects, broken down by position, who are expected to sign with an MLB team beginning July 2, with updates on their potential suitors based on reports from other well-known industry experts.
*A majority of the links to articles by Ben Badler (Baseball America) and Kiley McDaniel (Scouting Baseball) will take you to paywall-protected content.