Cubs International Free Agency Plans Coming Into Focus

Armed with their largest available spending budget since 2015, the Cubs plan to be aggressive on July 2 when the new class of amateur international prospects is available to sign.

Think of this international free agency like college recruiting; even though there’s a deadline until which signings cannot technically happen, most of the recruiting and decisions are completed long before that date. As such, the Cubs likely have a good idea to whom the large chunk of their $5.4 million budget will go.

Previously, Michael wrote up Baseball America’s first two posts on the free agency class, which connected the Cubs with top catching prospect Ronnier Quintero and lengthy and toolsy shortstop Kevin Made. On Wednesday, MLB Pipeline released their top 30 prospects in the International Free Agent class, confirming the Cubs connection to those two players while adding a third name: Venezuelan catcher Brayan Altuve.

Keep in mind that these players likely won’t play a professional game in 2019, will probably play in the Dominican Summer League in 2020, and then make their stateside debut in short-season ball in 2021. These guys across the board will have mid-2020’s ETAs at best. My head is still spinning from the 2003 birth year!

The last time the Cubs spent significantly on catching was the infamous 2015 class, in which Miguel Amaya ($1 million) and Henderson Perez ($1.25 million) were just two of the eight seven-figure bonuses doled out by the Cubs. It’s been a slow go for Perez so far, while Amaya has made himself one of the top prospects in the organization. This is how international free agency goes: buy a bunch of tickets, and hope to hit the lottery with one of them.

Quintero is the obvious best bet here, Pipeline’s #6 prospect, and in the video below you can see why. Quintero has plus-to-better bat speed on the left side, and with a muscular frame (for a 15-year-old), it’s not hard to see the plus power projection that Jesse Sanchez references. I think even if he were to move off catcher down the road, there would be enough hope in his bat’s potential to be a big prospect at a corner spot.

Neither Kevin Made or Brayan Altuve have video up, but Sanchez’s write ups give us a good idea of the player they are. Made, a tall, skinny athlete with solid actions at shortstop and a line drive stroke, checks in at #11 in the rankings:

At the plate, Made uses a slight upstroke swing lots of bat speed to generate flashes of average power. He’s been able to hit home runs consistently and has made a habit of getting multiple hits in games. He doesn’t strike out often.

Altuve sounds rather raw, but draws a comp to Willson Contreras. He checks in at #30 in the rankings. The Cubs have had good success in Venezuela overall, and clearly trust their scouting infrastructure there immensely. It will be interesting how they develop him defensively:

He’ll eventually have to harness some of his aggressiveness and athleticism, but what makes him so fun to watch is how well he moves behind the plate. That said, he flashes above-average arm strength, good range and overall adequate defensive actions. Like most catchers his age, he’s still working on his receiving skills and calling games.

You can bet we’ll hear two or three more names in the coming months, as the Cubs will also find some pitching to allocate this money. Cuba and Mexico are not accounted for in these rankings (the only player from either country is #7 Yiddi Cappe, a Cuban SS, who is not yet projected to a specific team), and the Cubs are certain to be players in those locales, as well. Overall this sounds like a good foundation of a class for the Cubs.

written by

Bryan Smith is a Minor League Writer at Bleacher Nation, and you can find him on Twitter at @cubprospects.

more cubs news

Wrigley Field is Gonna Be Lit This Year (As in New Colored Lights!)

Last year, the Cubs started using their new LED outfield lights to do a little dancing display during 'Go Cubs Go,' lighting along with the song and throwing in a W. It was very fun and I liked it. This...

The 2024 Chicago Cubs for Dummies

Boom. We made it. The offseason is over, and the Cubs regular season - and those elevated expectations - begins tomorrow. But in case you slept through the winter, I'm here to catch you up on everything you need to...

Why Craig Counsell Wanted Miles Mastrobuoni on the Cubs’ Bench

I don't know why Miles Mastrobuoni bugs some folks, but it's probably heavily-weighted toward his small-sample, bad-batted-ball-luck start last year, and that time he didn't dive while playing in right field. It can be hard to shake initial impressions, I...

Kinda Sounds Like Craig Counsell May Have a Set Top Three in the Batting Order

New Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell has said, generally, his batting order philosophy is the very simplistic (and very correct): just get your best hitters the most at bats. Sure, there's some play in that to set up good match-ups,...

Los Angeles Dodgers Signing Will Smith to a TEN-YEAR Extension

The Los Angeles Dodgers have done it again. And by it, I mean they have signed a funkily-structured contract that is going to leave some folks annoyed. The Dodgers are extending catcher Will Smith on a DECADE-long deal with a...

The Stretch: 2024 MLB Season Preview

On Monday, during a team-building conversation with some of the Bleacher Nation and Betsperts Media Group folks, we discussed sports—shocking, I know—and Brian Twining asked the group what their favorite sport was. For me, it's baseball. There's no debate. I...

We Have to Talk About Some of the “Deals” the Cubs Sat Out in Free Agency

This week, in a conversation with Jon Greenberg at The Athletic, Cubs President Jed Hoyer made an honest and sober (but also moderately disappointing) admission about the 2024 Chicago Cubs: "We need to perform probably at or a little bit...

The Chicago Cubs Are Reportedly Now Worth Over $5 Billion

Given all the tumult in the baseball broadcasting world, and the uncertain future for that portion of revenues, you'd be forgiven for expecting that MLB franchise valuations would slow their recent surge. But, according to Sportico at least, you'd be...

Reds Second Baseman Matt McLain Had Shoulder Surgery

The injury to Matt McLain's shoulder issue obviously wound up being worse than he and the Cincinnati Reds had been hoping. The damage to his left (non-throwing) labrum ultimately required surgery: https://twitter.com/m_sheldon/status/1772993402604339478 When the hope is that a guy can...

Cubs Actually Getting a Whole Lot of Votes to Win the NL Central

ESPN dropped its big season preview, and included were a set of divisional predictions by way of their writers, editors, and analysts voting. There's nothing in the way of proof or certainty there, but with 26 voters, I do like...

Latest News

Celtics vs. Hawks Prediction: Expert Picks, Odds, Stats and Best Bets – Thursday, March 28, 2024

The Atlanta Hawks (33-39) are big, 17.5-point underdogs as they attempt to build on a three-game winning streak when they host the Boston Celtics (57-15) on Thursday, March 28, 2024 at State Farm Arena. The matchup airs at 7:30 PM...

Celtics vs. Hawks Predictions, Best Bets and Odds – Thursday, March 28, 2024

The Atlanta Hawks (33-39) are big, 17.5-point underdogs as they attempt to build on a three-game winning streak when they host the Boston Celtics (57-15) on Thursday, March 28, 2024 at State Farm Arena. The contest airs at 7:30 PM...

Bucks vs. Pelicans Predictions, Best Bets and Odds – Thursday, March 28, 2024

The New Orleans Pelicans (44-28) are only 2-point underdogs against the Milwaukee Bucks (46-26) at Smoothie King Center on Thursday, March 28, 2024. The game begins at 8:00 PM ET on NBA. The matchup's point total is 223.If you are...

How to Watch Indiana State Sycamores vs. Utah Utes: Live Stream or on TV

The Indiana State Sycamores (31-6) will attempt to build on a three-game winning streak when they host the Utah Utes (22-14) on April 2, 2024. The Utes have also won three games in a row.Indiana State won its most recent...

How to Watch Seton Hall Pirates vs. Georgia Bulldogs: Live Stream or on TV

The Seton Hall Pirates (23-12) will attempt to extend a three-game win streak when they host the Georgia Bulldogs (20-16) on April 2, 2024. The Bulldogs have also won three games in a row.In its previous game, Seton Hall beat...

Diamondbacks vs. Rockies: Free Live Stream, TV Channel, How to Watch

The Arizona Diamondbacks, led by Corbin Carroll, take on Nolan Jones and the Colorado Rockies in their first game of the season, at 10:10 PM ET on Thursday.If you're trying to watch this game, keep reading for streaming and TV...

Mariners vs. Red Sox: Start Time, Streaming Live, TV Channel, How to Watch

The Seattle Mariners, led by Julio Rodriguez, square off against Rafael Devers and the Boston Red Sox in their opening game of the season, at 10:10 PM ET on Thursday.If you're trying to watch this game, keep reading for streaming...

Guardians vs. Athletics: Start Time, Streaming Live, TV Channel, How to Watch

In their season opener on Thursday, Jose Ramirez and the Cleveland Guardians face Brent Rooker and the Oakland Athletics, with first pitch scheduled for 10:07 PM ET at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.The article below will give you everything you need to...

Senators vs. Blackhawks Prediction: Picks, Live Odds and Moneyline – Thursday, March 28, 2024

The Ottawa Senators host the Chicago Blackhawks on Thursday, and are -198 favorites on the moneyline, with the road team at +164.Senators vs. Blackhawks Favorite, Moneyline, TotalFavorite: Senators (-198)Underdog: Blackhawks (+164)Total: 6.5Best Senators vs. Blackhawks Promo Codes[lasso type="table" id="1"]How to...

Wrigley Field is Gonna Be Lit This Year (As in New Colored Lights!)

Last year, the Cubs started using their new LED outfield lights to do a little dancing display during 'Go Cubs Go,' lighting along with the song and throwing in a W. It was very fun and I liked it. This...

more cubs news