Lourdes Gurriel waited until after his 23rd birthday to sign with a Major League organization, so that he could get around international spending pool limits. On Friday, he cashed in.
MLB.com’s No. 6 international prospect signed a seven-year, $22 million contract with the Blue Jays on Friday, according to multiple reports. MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez first reported the signing with the New York Post’s Joel Sherman filling in the exact details of the contract. The team confirmed the deal via Twitter on Saturday morning.
Gurriel is the younger brother of 32-year-old third baseman Yulieski Gurriel, who signed a five-year, $47.5 million deal with the Astros back in July. The brothers defected from their native Cuba in February following the conclusion of the Caribbean Series in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
A right-handed hitter, Lourdes last played in the Cuban National Series for Industrialies de La Habana in 2015 for whom he hit .344/.407/.560 with 10 homers, 17 doubles and eight stolen bases over 59 games. He received time primarily in left field but also played shortstop, second base and third base in his final Cuban season. He played six seasons in total in his native land, producing a career .277/.362/.426 line over 305 games dating back to 2010.
Cuban defectors who have played six seasons professionally and are older than 23 are not subject to the bonus pools that limit how much organizations can spend on international prospects. Gurriel turned 23 on Oct. 19 and signed with the Blue Jays a little more than three weeks later.
The 6-foot-4, 205-pound infielder/outfielder is considered to be just a tick above average offensively with average power. He received a 60 grade for his fielding and a 55 for his arm on the 20-80 scale from MLB.com, and it’s believed that he’ll play somewhere up the middle — center field, shortstop or second base. He could also be a super-utility player, given his history of moving around the diamond.
Because of his age and experience, Gurriel has a chance to move quickly through the Toronto system — though not as quickly as his older brother, who played only 15 games in the Minors before making his Major League debut on Aug. 21.
fromBisons.com via IFTTT
