The Dodgers opened the international signing period on Sunday by signing two of the class’s top prospects, despite having the smallest bonus budget among MLB clubs.
The two players who headlined the organization’s 13-player signing class were shortstop Joendry Vargas and outfielder Arnaldo Lantigua, both signed from the Dominican Republic, the team revealed on Sunday night.
Vargas, a right-handed hitter who stands 6-foot-3 and weighs 170 pounds, was rated by MLB Pipeline as this year’s third-best foreign prospect. The website highlighted Vargas’s physical attributes, sophisticated plate approach, and above-average throwing arm.17-year-old Lantigua, a 6-foot-3, 180-pound prospect with much-touted power-hitting ability from the right side of the plate, was ranked by MLB Pipeline as the 23rd best overall talent in the class.
The Dodgers signed six Dominican players on Sunday, including these two. The other two are right-handed pitchers Anderson Jerez and Erick Batista, as well as shortstops Daniel Mielcarek and Elias Medina.
Additionally, the Dodgers signed seven Venezuelan players: shortstops Harold Gonzalez and Javier Herrera; catcher Eduardo Quintero; right-handed pitchers Jesus Tillero, Samuel Sanchez, Robinson Ventura, and Luis Carias.
For the second consecutive year, the Dodgers entered the international signing tied for the smallest bonus pool among MLB’s 30 teams, having only $4.144 million to spend on prospects.
They were docked $1 million as a penalty for signing Freddie Freeman last year, since he had rejected his previous team’s qualifying offer and the Dodgers were a luxury tax club the previous season.
The only other club that had as small of a pool this year was the Texas Rangers.
This is the third consecutive year MLB’s international signing period began in January, as opposed to its old start date in July.
