Tuesday,
November 30, 2010
Twins Sign Dominican Shortstop
According to Ben Badler of Baseball America, the
Twins have signed
Dominican shortstop Javier Pimentel to a $575,000 signing bonus. In
July, the 17 year old was ranked as the #10 prospect to come out of the
Dominican Republic this year. The Twins continued their trend of spending
internationally. Last week, they ‘won’ the rights to negotiate with Japanese
middle infielder Tsuyoshi Nishioka by posting a bid of $5.3 million. Last year,
they signed the #1 prospect from the Dominican Republic, Miguel Sano, to a $3.15 million signing bonus. They also signed
Dominican shortstop Jorge Polanco for approximately $750,000. They also signed Max Kepler,
believed to be the best prospect ever to come out of Europe, for about
$750,000.
Last year, Twins GM Bill Smith told John Bonnes
of TwinsCentric (in the 2009/10 Offseason GM Handbook)
that the Twins have spent the past decade focusing on the international
scouting and now in the last year, they are really seeing the benefits of those
efforts. It takes time to penetrate a new market. The Twins clearly have a much
better name now in the Dominican Republic. They now have a name in Japan and
the Far East. They have been strong in Australia.
What do I know about Javier Pimentel? Pretty much nothing other than what Blake
Bentley wrote at MLB Trade Rumors in early July which was, “A
wide-shouldered shortstop with a solid bat and plenty of room for improvement.” Sounds like a
very talented kid, with power potential, who is very raw and has a long way to
go. He may be in the GCL next year, or the Twins may have him spend the summer
in the Dominican Summer League before coming to the States.
It’s exciting to be a Twins fan thanks to
Target Field. I mean, it’s always exciting for me to be a Twins fan, but the
opportunities that are open to the Twins now that were not options just two or
three years ago can’t be ignored!
Any
thoughts? Please feel free to e-mail me or
leave
your comments here.