Market Shake-Up: The Top Player from Cuba, Yulieski Gurriel, is Now a Free Agent

You don’t often see a huge shake up in the free agent market in June, but it’s happened.

According to Jesse Sanchez, infielder Yulieski Gurriel (sometimes Gourriel), is now a free agent and available for bidding. You may recall that Gurriel, 32, defected from Cuba with his younger brother Lourdes (not yet a free agent) earlier this year. Many sources consider him among the best players in Cuba, and perhaps the best. His impact to an MLB team would be significant and immediate.

Although I’m not certain the Cubs would be involved on Gurriel given the lack of an obvious spot, you can’t totally rule it out when a true impact player becomes available for only money. Still, it’s a much better bet that there will be suitors that are more hot and/or heavy.

And that makes Gurriel’s free agency worth following for Cubs fans in any case, as where he lands could have a significant impact on this season’s playoff race and on into the future. Furthermore, his availability at this time of year will also have a major impact on the trade market, as some teams may view Gurriel as an impact alternative to making a big trade.

For more on Gurriel, catch yourself up here and here. This news is just now breaking, so I anticipate there will be much more in the coming days and weeks.