A look at the 11 players signed by Padres on international market
MiLB
A look at the 11 players signed this week by the San Diego Padres on the international market.
During the 2020-2021 MLB offseason, the San Diego Padres conducted two big trades that depleted their vaulted farm system.
Fortunately for San Diego, A.J. Preller, and international scouting director Chris Kemp don’t rebuild their farm system. They reload.
The 2020-2021 international signing period has already started and will continue until Dec. 15, but San Diego has already signed eleven international free agents, including four of Baseball America’s Top 50 prospects.
Here is a look at all prospects signed. (Note: this list will not include Korean shortstop Ha-Seong Kim, as he played for the Korean Baseball Organization’s Kiwoom Heroes and was posted for bidding by the club).
Victor Acosta
The crown jewel of San Diego’s IFA class, Acosta ranked at No. 21 on Baseball America’s Top 50 prospects list as well as No.19 on MLB.com’s Top 30 International Prospect lists.
Listed as a shortstop and standing at 5’11”, the 16-year-old Acosta is a native of the Dominican Republic and is one of his class’s top shortstop prospects. Acosta is a switch hitter with good bat speed and ball-to-bat skills, with evaluators projecting as a top-of-the-order hitter. He has a slight uppercut in his swing and is currently stronger from the plate’s left side.
A plus runner, evaluators like his footwork at shortstop while mentioning his quick and easy glovework.
Top Padres target Victor Acosta signed for $1.8 million today.
Full scouting report here + other names to know: https://t.co/WU6nCNi9dC pic.twitter.com/Y86VJlZZdy
— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) January 16, 2021
Victor Lizarraga
A right-handed pitcher from Mexico, Baseball America lists Lizarraga as their No. 34 overall prospect. He has recently fallen out of MLB.com’s Top 30 due to the sheer number of prospects available.
Lizarraga is listed at 6’4″ and is armed with a fastball that has been clocked as high as 93 mph. He is projected to throw the pitch with more heat as he gets older and puts on more weight.
He balances out his fastball with a curveball that can miss bats alongside a changeup that, while developing, he has a soft feel for.
Samuel Zavala
At 16 years old, Zavala is one of the younger members of his class. However, the Venezuelan native is still hailed as one of the top pure hitters of the 2020 class.
#Padres sign Venezuelan OF Samuel Zavala for $1.2 million. He is No. 37 on @BaseballAmerica board. Comp — Carlos Gonzalez. pic.twitter.com/iAekbEAATZ
— Jeff Sanders (@sdutSanders) January 15, 2021
Zavala brings an all-field approach to the plate, and his power has already begun to increase as he gets older.
Zavala has shown good instincts for the ball with an arm that projects from average to solid on the outfield grass. While he is currently a center fielder, he will most likely move to the corner spot as he gets older.
Daniel Montesino
Like Zavala, Montesino is another outfielder that has been hailed as one of the top left-handed hitters of his class. Unlike Zavala, Montesino has already begun to grow into a power hitter.
From Venezuela, Baseball America ranks Montesino slightly lower than Zavala at No. 42 overall but rave about his trending power potential. He can hit the ball to all fields and has solid control of the bat.
Montesino is a corner outfielder at the moment, but scouts foresee a move to first base as he gets older.
Venezuelan RF Daniel Montesino gets $1 million from the #Padres. 6-foot-3, 200 pound power hitting profile from the left side. A Tirso Ornelas look. pic.twitter.com/r4p2fPGUoD
— Jeff Sanders (@sdutSanders) January 15, 2021
Bradgley Rodriguez
After trading Luis Patino to the Tampa Bay Rays, San Diego may have found his replacement in the Venezuelan Rodriguez.
Rodriguez has a live arm with a fastball that can be thrown as high as 93 mph.
As seen in the video below, his mechanics are similar to Patino whether Rodriguez becomes like Patino or not is up to him.
#Padres sign RHP Bradgley Rodríguez out of Venezuela for $370K. There are Luis Patiño comparisons. Rodríguez is 5-11, 150 pounds with a fast arm that’s been up to 93 pic.twitter.com/9UcMvTXmwl
— Jeff Sanders (@sdutSanders) January 15, 2021
Evan Sweeting
Some international prospects are signed from Venezuela. Others from the Dominican Republic. Others from Cuba.
Sweeting is from none of those places. He hails from the Bahamas, a country not exactly known for producing baseball stars.
Evan Sweeting RHP (Bahamas) helped solidify himself as a very high-upside pitching prospect this weekend at Fenway.
Sweeting had 4 K/6 BF. Having only moved stateside recently, on the verge of permanently placing himself on the map.
@Program15BB @ftrstarsseries @Evan_sweeting01 pic.twitter.com/mbwdjdSuUm
— Michael Marino (@MMarino31) October 3, 2020
Sweeting has a three-pitch mix, with a fastball that tops out at 91 mph, a curveball that sits at 75-78 mph, and a changeup that ranges from 78-80 mph. He can locate all of them very well and projects as a reliever.
Yariel Moreno
Coming out of Panama is the 16-year-old Moreno, the fifth right-handed pitcher, the Padres, have signed in their class.
Despite his age, Moreno possesses a power fastball that tops out at 91 mph but will normally sit in the upper 80’s.
#Padres believe RHP Yariel Moreno is the top arm out of Panama. He’s 88-91 at 16 years old. He signs for $200K. pic.twitter.com/E1H0FKLMuK
— Jeff Sanders (@sdutSanders) January 15, 2021
Eddy Beltre
A five-tool player that comes out of the Dominican Republic, Beltre is an exciting outfielder that has the potential to be a special player in the Padres farm system.
Beltre already has plenty of speed on both the basepaths and the outfield grass. However, he repeats his hitting mechanics well as he drives the ball.
Lot of international signing news coming in. Here’s a look at Eddy Beltre hitting in the Dominican. A five tool prospect signed today by #Padres pic.twitter.com/6GTmfq2vSF
— Jeff Sanders (@sdutSanders) January 15, 2021
Javier Chacon
The only left-handed pitcher signed so far by the Padres, San Diego is high on Chacon, and hope he can become the next prized left-hander in their system.
Sitting at 89-92 mph with his fastball, the Padres believe the native of Havana, Cuba, can become a starting pitcher in the near future.
If not, he will certainly have a place in the bullpen as he gets older.
#Padres high on LHP Javier Chacon, 17 yrs old out of Havana, Cuba. 89-92 mph with a starter look. pic.twitter.com/3j18hxX8Df
— Jeff Sanders (@sdutSanders) January 15, 2021
Heber Villalobos
After a mass exodus of catchers thanks to recent trades, San Diego needed to rebuild its catching depth. They’ll start rebuilding it with Villalobos.
A native of Mexico, Villalobos has spent time with the ProBeis Mexican Prospect League and will now get time to develop within the San Diego instructional camps.
Jonny Rosario and Alejandro Hernandez
There is little info available about Rosario and Hernandez other than that Rosario is a right-handed pitcher, Hernandez is a shortstop, and both are natives from Venezuela. Signing and bonus information has not been released.
I am currently attending San Diego State University while working on achieving a major in journalism. At SDSU, I write for The Daily Aztec while also hosting the sports radio show “Picked Off”, for KCR Radio. A loyal fan of San Diego sports, I hope to bring content that you will enjoy reading.