NEWSLETTER
We are long outside of the peak international free agent signing period (nowadays, that’s mostly all wrapped in January), but that doesn’t mean there aren’t additional signings – and reports of signings – throughout the year. And sometimes, they are interesting as heck.
For example, the Cubs signing the first ever player out of Bulgaria? That’s just cool.
Also cool? The 17-year-old is a freaking tank (listed at 6’4″, 230 lbs), and appears to hit the crap out of the ball:
First look at Yoanis in his #Cubs gear 🙌🏼 pic.twitter.com/NwMnFwXeCo
— Cubs Zone (@CubsZone) March 29, 2022
Look at this power 💪🏼 pic.twitter.com/SNZUftrMMm
— Cubs Zone ™️ (@CubsZone) March 29, 2022
Bulgaria, which is south of Romania in the Balkans in Eastern Europe, has had some lower-level organized baseball for a little while now, but like a number of other European countries, it’s only in the last few years that you see more of a push. The Cubs signed a two-way prospect out of Spain just a couple years ago (a first), and have been signing players out of Italy for a little while now. Just because the sport is relatively nascent in an area of the world doesn’t mean it isn’t worth scouting if you can.
Aleksandrov was apparently represented by Wasserman Sports through his scouting and signing process, so it seems like this wasn’t just a situation of finding a hidden gem. There was probably SOME element of that, but clearly he was known to stateside organizations.
Consider Yoanis Aleksandrov a fun story to follow, but given his age, size, and swing, it’s not like he couldn’t become a legit prospect in the years ahead. What a win that would be for the Cubs.
