Because Matt Garza rumors and other trade stuff wasn’t enough to keep you on the edge of your seat this month …
We’ve been following his story for quite some time now, and it’s finally about to come to a head. Cuban pitcher Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez, a 26-year-old righty in whom multiple teams are interested, has finally been cleared by the US Government to sign with an MLB team, per Jesse Sanchez.
The Cubs are reported to have serious interest – they’ve scouted him heavily – but uncle moneybags (the Dodgers) is involved, and seems to be the favorite. The Cubs have at least as much reason to want Gonzalez as the Dodgers (or Red Sox or Yankees or whoever), assuming they like what they’ve seen. So, this might be another money test case.
I would expect there to be more on Gonzalez over the next few days. Sanchez says he could sign this or next week (though I wouldn’t expect anything official until at least after the All-Star Game).
Remember: as a 26-year-old Cuban, Gonzalez is not subject to international spending limits (a market in which the Cubs have already been going nuts), so he can sign for as much as someone wants to pay him.