Cuban OF Jorge Soler officially a free agent
We haven't discussed Cuban outfielder Jorge Soler for a while, because it has seemingly taken forever for him to become a free agent. And all of a sudden, Saturday morning, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com has learned that Soler has officially become a free agent.
One might recall the process for Yoenis Cespedes to become a free agent out of Cuba. He had to become a citizen of a different country (in his case, the Dominican Republic) and then had to be unblocked by the Office of Foreign Assets Control. So a similar process is likely in place with Soler.
Last we heard of Soler rumors, the Cubs seemed to be the heaviest suitor, but the Blue Jays also reportedly worked him out. The Red Sox, Yankees, Phillies, Astros, Orioles, and a few others were mentioned over the winter at different points as having some level of interest. Many more teams will surely be involved in talks before a final contract is signed.
Soler, 20, is said to be a 6-foot-3, 205 pound right fielder, who could also play center, with "explosive bat speed and power potential," according to Baseball America -- which compared him to Royals prospect Bubba Starling and noted Soler may have been a top-five pick in last year's draft. Baseball Prospectus noted in the preseason that Soler would have been the 39th-ranked prospect in baseball, had he been signed when the list was made.
So we have a raw, young talent on the market with a July 2nd deadline before the new, more strict CBA rules are in place on international signings limits. Expect bidding to commence immediately and a deal to be in place before July 2.
For more baseball news, rumors and analysis, follow @EyeOnBaseball on Twitter, subscribe to the RSS feed and "like" us on Facebook.
One might recall the process for Yoenis Cespedes to become a free agent out of Cuba. He had to become a citizen of a different country (in his case, the Dominican Republic) and then had to be unblocked by the Office of Foreign Assets Control. So a similar process is likely in place with Soler.
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Soler, 20, is said to be a 6-foot-3, 205 pound right fielder, who could also play center, with "explosive bat speed and power potential," according to Baseball America -- which compared him to Royals prospect Bubba Starling and noted Soler may have been a top-five pick in last year's draft. Baseball Prospectus noted in the preseason that Soler would have been the 39th-ranked prospect in baseball, had he been signed when the list was made.
So we have a raw, young talent on the market with a July 2nd deadline before the new, more strict CBA rules are in place on international signings limits. Expect bidding to commence immediately and a deal to be in place before July 2.
For more baseball news, rumors and analysis, follow @EyeOnBaseball on Twitter, subscribe to the RSS feed and "like" us on Facebook.
