This topic could generate some debate, given the fact that most parents in Latin America prefer their kids to sign with a Major League team instead of getting a scholarship to play College ball in the States. But what’s the driving force behind parents and their decision?

Well, in Latin America, most players come from families with very little income, and when a team approaches them with a $200,000 or $500,000  bonus for their kids, all they want is to get their hands on that check, regardless of the long term problems this could lead to.

We all know that probably around 92% of the draftees in the June Amateur Draft get lost in the Minors and never establish themselves in the Majors. Well, in Latin America that number could be closer to 99%, which means that out of a hundred players signed only one will make it. Tough odds if you ask me.

The problem is when a Latin player gets signed, he immediately quits school and becomes a professional baseball player. If he doesn’t make it, and the statistics are not in their favor, he will probably end up without a career in baseball, which up until this point is all they have known. And to be honest, almost none of them continue their studies once their baseball careers are over. In my experience I’ve met more than one hundred ex-professional baseball players and only two of them went back to school and graduated.

What parents need to know about all this, is that they should insist on their kids getting a scholarship to play College ball in the States. Not only will they get a degree in something, they will also participate in three different June Amateur Drafts and if they get drafted and they decide to sign, their signing bonus will be much, much larger than they one they could have signed out of Latin America. Getting scholarships will also prevent players from lying about their age and identities just to get signed. Like what happened with Leo Nunez last year, Miguel Tejada a couple of years ago and recently formerly Fausto Carmona.

Lately, a rumor about an International draft has been circulating through the media. If that draft reinforces kids quitting school and signing with a Major League organization I would have to say that I don’t support it. Latin American amateur players should first try to get a scholarship to a U.S College and then go for a career in professional baseball if they get drafted. After all, if they’re good enough to get a signing bonus from a Major League organization in Latin America they will be good enough to find a scholarship at a U.S College.

Here is a list of the 2011 June Amateur Draft signing bonus for the top five picks (list provided by mymlbdraft.com):

– Gerrit Cole: $8,000,000 with the Pirates.

– Danny Hultzen: $8,500,000 for a five-year, Major League deal with the Mariners.

– Trevor Bauer: $4,450,000 for a four-year, Major League deal with the Diamondbacks.

– Dylan Bundy: $6,250,000 for a five-year, Major League deal with the Orioles.

– Bubba Starling: $7,500,000 with the Royals.

And here’s a list of the five largest bonuses of all time signed by Latin American players (list provided by Patrick Clark of Beyond the Box Score):

– Michael Ynoa (Dominican Republic): $4,250,000 with the Oakland Athletics.

– Miguel Sano (Dominican Republic): $3,150,000 with the Minnesota Twins.

– Gary Sanchez (Dominican Republic): $3,000,000 with the New York Yankees.A

– Rafael Rodriguez (Dominican Republic): $2,550,000 with the San Francisco Giants.A

– Yorman Rodriguez (Venezuela): $2,500,000 with the Cincinnati Reds.A

Even though Bauer was just drafted this June, he has already played at Double-A for the Diamondbacks, but from the top-five Latin American players only three have cracked Class-A. Sanchez (signed in 2009), Rafael Rodriguez(signed in 2008) and Yorman Rodriguez (signed in 2008). The rest of them have only played in the rookie league.

If Latin American players pushed to receive a guaranteed college education, it would not only help them receive more attention from scouts in the States, but would also help them take back a solid college education to their respective Countries in hopes of being able to make a difference in their communities.

In three seasons, all with the Rangers, Andrus has played in at least 145 games and owns a career .271 avg and posted career highs in hit (164) and stolen bases (37) last season.

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Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times adds that Kershaw will receive a $500,000 signing bonus with salaries of $7.5 million 2012 and $11 million in 2013. $2mm of his 2012 salary will be deferred to January 2013.

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For the Reds to make the deal work though, they would have to move some salary with the likely trade candidate being Homer Bailey and his $2.425mm deal.

Oswalt has received interest from the Cardinals, Rangers, Red Sox and Tigers, with the Cardinals and Rangers being viewed as the favorites.

In 2011, Oswalt went 9-10 while posting a 3.69 era in 139 innings with the Phillies. He did average a career low with 6.0 strike outs per 9 innings and is coming off a series of injuries. Oswalt earned $16mm last season and made $1,777,777.78 for every win or $172,043,01 for every strikeout.

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When healthy, Kuo was one of the most dominant left handed relievers in the game which is evident by him making the All-Star team in 2010, when he led all big league relievers with a 1.20 ERA.

2011 was a different story for Kuo who posted a 9.00 ERA in 40 appearances while dealing with anxiety issues.

In seven major league seasons, all with the Dodgers, Kuo went 13-7 with 13 saves and a 3.73 career ERA in 292 1/3 innings pitched and one memorable bat flip/ home run in 2007.

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“Jeremy is excited to join the Rockies, and I see this as a positive result for all parties,” Guthrie’s agent, Brodie Van Wagenen, said in a statement. “Negotiations with the Orioles were steady yet slow, and an arbitration hearing seemed possible and even likely. Once informed of the trade, Jeremy decided to make a showing of good faith and agreed to a deal within the Rockies’ payroll structure, since he felt it important that his relationship with his new team get off on the right foot. Jeremy is excited about a fresh start with a new organization and a contending team close to home.”

Guthrie then agreed to a one-year deal with the Rockies for $8.2mm, thus avoiding arbitration.

Guthrie will be a free agent after the 2012 season and according to Connolly, he had been rumored to be on the trading block.

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Last season for the Nats, Ankiel posted a .239 avg while accumulating 91 hits in 380 at-bats.

Ankiel earned a base salary of $1.5mm last season and also earned an additional $450k in incentives for reaching 100, 150, 200, 250, 300 and 375 plate appearances.

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Last season, Penny went 11-11 last season for the Detroit Tigers with a 5.30 ERA and 74 strikeouts in 31 games while earning $3mm.

Penny’s career year came in 2007 with the Dodgers when he went 16-4 with a 3.03 era, while striking out 135 in 208 innings. That year he earned $7.5mm as he was in the second year of a three-year deal he singed in 2006.

Penny has a 119-99 career record and a 4.23 ERA over a 12-year major league career.

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They have an outstanding offense, now even more improved with the addition of Prince Fielder, and the most dominant starting pitcher in the Majors in 2011, Justin Verlander.

In 2011, the Tigers won 96 games during the regular season. This means that they won 47 games above the 49 games won line. Their payroll for 2011 was $105,700,231 (ranked tenth in the Majors), breaking down their expenses to $2,006,451.72 for every win they got above 49.

Their top five paid players were:

– Miguel Cabrera ($20,000,000): A worthy MVP candidate in 2011, Cabrera hit .344/.448/.586 with 30 HR’s, 105 RBI’s, 111 runs and a 1.0333 OPS in a career high 161 games. The slugger earned $666,666.67 for every home run he hit, $190,476.19 for every run he batted in, $180,180.18 for every run he scored or $61,162.08 for every time he got on base.

– Carlos Guillen ($12,922,232): Guillen hit .232/.265/.368 with 3 HR’s, 13 RBI’s, 8 runs and a .633 OPS in only 28 games. He earned $4,307,410.67 for every home run hit, $994,017.85 for every run batted in, $1,615,279 for every run scored or $478,601.19 for every time he got on base.

– Justin Verlander ($12,850,000): The most dominant pitcher in the Majors in 2011 went 24-5 with a 2.40 ERA and 250 strikeouts in 251 innings pitched. Verlander earned $535,416.67 for every game he won, $51,400 for every hitter he struck out or $176,027.40 for every run the opposition scored against him.

– Victor Martinez ($12,000,000): The switch hitting catcher hit .330/.380/.470 with 12 HR’s, 103 RBI’s, 76 runs and a .850 OPS. Martinez earned $1,000,000 for every home run he hit, $116,504.85 for every run he batted in, $157,894.74 for every run he scored or $52,173.91 for every time he got on base.

– Magglio Ordonez ($10,000,000): Ordonez hit .255/.303/.331 with 5 HR’s, 32 RBI’s, 33 runs and a .634 OPS. He earned $2,000,000 for every home run he hit, $312,500 for every run he batted in, $303,030.30 for every run he scored or $97,457.94 for every time he got on base.

Out of their top five paid players, only three lived up their expectations, actually two of them were outstanding, and probably among the best three players in the league, in my opinion (Cabrera and Verlander). Guillen was limited by injuries to only 28 games, making him incredibly pricey for the productivity they got from him.

Ordonez saw his playing time limited with injuries too, although he end up playing in 92 games. His power seemed to have vanished, slugging only .331 for the season, basically he slugged like a short stop while playing as a right fielder or a designated hitter.

Martinez proved to be valuable as a hitter for the Tigers, who saw time behind the plate with Alex Avila and but majority of his time was as the designated hitter. Unfortunately for the Tigers, they won’t have Martinez in 2012 because he suffered a torn ACL and a knee micro-fracture, but they are hoping that Fielder fills the void left for him next season.

The Tigers were a competitive team, with bright stars such as Cabrera, Verlander and Martinez, combining them with young talent such as Austin Jackson, Rick Porcello, Avila, Max Scherzer and Doug Fister. Their collective OBP was .344 (third in the AL), their SLG was .434 (fourth in the AL) and their OPS was .773 (also fourth in the AL). They also scored a total of 787 runs, fourth in the AL. Breaking down their expenses, each run they scored cost them $134,307.79.

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Coffey will earn $1MM in 2013, with the club option being worth $2.5MM with a $300K buyout.

Coffey posted a 3.62 era last season for the Nationals. He earned $1.35mm last season and also earned an additional $150k in appearance bonuses (made 69 appearances, $75k for hitting 60 and 65 appearances).

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Kotchman hit a .306 avg in 563 plate appearances for the Rays last season on a minor league deal that paid him $750k.

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Heyman addsthat Jackson’s deal with the Nationals is believed to be in the $8-$12 million range. The 28-year old went 12-9 with a 3.79 ERA and 148 strikeouts in 199.2 innings with the White Sox and Cardinals in 2011. He has a career 1.0 HR/9, 6.7 SO/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 203 games, 173 starts.

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Last season, Owings posted a 3.57 era while going 8-0 in 33 appearances with the Diamondbacks while working out of the bullpen.

In 2007, Owings posted a .333 batting average in 60 at-bats with the D’backs as he will routinely hit for himself even when pitching out of the bullpen.

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He’s been known to sign players like Scott Hatteberg and Jeremy Giambi among others for their ability to wear down pitchers and get on-base. For him, the ultimate offensive statistic is the OBP.

The A’s are not getting positive results, and other teams like the Red Sox have adopted a similar approach to building a team, making it harder for the A’s to get cheap, but productive players. So why doesn’t Beane gives Gregor Blanco and Luis Jimenez a shot to make the team?

You might think that I’ve gone crazy, and yes, I have gone crazy, but in situations like this one, you have to think outside the box. Maybe you guys are not familiar with these two young players, but I’m going to tell you why I think they could work up in Oakland. It would be a low risk investment that would cost the team only a Minor League deal.

First there’s Blanco. A 28-year old center fielder with an incredible talent for wearing down pitchers and a keen eye for drawing walks. In three Major League seasons his career OBP is .358, or .100 points above his career batting average. I believe this numbers can still go up. In 2010 he played 36 games with the Braves where he hit .310/.394/.362. He was then traded to the Royals and in 66 games hit .274/.348/.369. In 237 AB’s in 2010 between the two teams he walked 29 times and struck out 50. Nothing impressive, but I’m sure he can improve.

This winter in Venezuela, Blanco hit .337/.478/.520 with 4 HR’s, 14 2B and 5 3B in 196 AB’s. He also walked 47 times and struck out 46. Impressive numbers that earned him the MVP award in the Venezuelan Winter League this year. In the semi-finals, Blanco kept his torrid offensive output up hitting .347/.484/.714 with 5 HR’s, 1 2B and 1 3B in 49 AB’s. He also has walked 13 times and struck out 11. Now tell me why doesn’t Beane gives him a Minor League deal with a ST invitation to see if he can makes the team? After all the kid fits perfectly in the OBP-driven offensive/cheap player category.

Jimenez is another case study. He has incredible power and is a left handed hitter. The other day, he hit two 450+ ft home runs in the same game in Venezuela. And one of them was well beyond the 500 ft mark. The ball left the stadium, and was apparently the longest hit in the “Estadio Universitario” (Caracas, Venezuela) history. In 10 Minor League seasons Jimenez has a hitting line of .284/.367/.468 with 121 HR’s in 2,876 AB’s. This year in Venezuela, Jimenez hit .300/.417/.486 with 10 home runs in 220 AB’s. He also walked 44 times and struck out 47.

For Beane and the A’s, these two players are not going to be pricey. Just a couple of Minor League deals with invitations to Spring Training. I think they will prove their value to a team that is always looking for bargains.

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Guillen will earn a base salary of $1mm and has incentives tied to plate appearances included in the deal.

Last season with the Tigers, Guillen was limited to only 95 at-bats and hit .232.

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Cashman believes Hendry will be an “invaluabe resource” (via Levine). “He can scout amateur players; he scouts pro players for us,” he said. “He’s as connected in the game as you can possibly be. Everybody loves this man.”

According to a source close to Levine, the 56 year old Hendry agreed to a multiyear deal with the Yankees. And another source close to Levine said Hendry’s duties will include “looking at minor league players, major league players and spending time with the major league team.”

The Cubs fired Hendry in August 2011. During Hendry’s tenure as a General Manager, the Cubs were 749-748, one game above .500 and won three division titles(2003, ‘07, ‘08).

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Hernandez went 8-13 with a 4.47 era for the Nationals in 2011. In 2001 with the Giants, Hernandez hit .296 in 81 at-bats, totalling 24 hits (4 doubles, 1 home run).

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The 29 year old last pitched in the Majors in 2010 with the Rockies and Red Sox. That year he went 3-4 with a 4.99 ERA in 52.1 innings. He also posted a 1.4 HR/9, 5.5 BB/9 and 6.5 SO/9 that season.

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Last season, Galarraga went 3-4 with Arizona while posting a 5.91 era.

Prior to last season Galarraga agreed to a one-year $2.3mm deal with Detroit and then released the next day. At that time, the Orioles were interested in the right hander.

The 29-year-old shot to worldwide fame for his sportsmanship that he displayed after an umpire’s error cost him a perfect game in 2010.

Galarraga will continue to be under team control through the 2013 season.

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Washington has led the Texas Rangers to back-to-back American League pennants.  He came as close as one strike to winning the 2011 World Series.

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The New York Mets granted him free agency after the 2011 season.  Buchholz and the Mets announced last summer that the pitcher was dealing with emotional issues.

“If he signs with anyone, it would be with the Mets,” Pasti said. “The way they handled the situation with Taylor meant a lot to him. The Mets really cared about him. As of right now, Taylor is taking the year off. He’s feeling great, but not ready to get back into baseball. He’s taking it one day at a time.”

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Wheeler posted a 4.38 era and averaged 7 strikeouts per nine innings in 49 1/3 innings for Boston last season.

Wheeler made $3mm last season and became a free agent when Boston declined his $3mm team option for 2012.

Speier also notes that the Red Sox will not receive compensation for Wheeler signing with the Indians even though he is a type B free agent because he signed a minor league deal.

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Curt Flood was a successful MLB player who earned seven Gold Glove Awards, played in three All-Star Games, and won two World Series.  In 1970, after being traded to the Phillies against his wishes, Flood challenged baseball’s reserve clause, fighting it all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Although Flood lost the court case, his step of suing MLB ultimately paved the way for reforms like the 1975 Seitz Decision, which granted baseball with free agency, a great benefit to everyone affiliated with the game.

Flood is considered by many to be the pioneer of free agency, but he paid a significant price for his contributions by sacrificing a flourishing MLB career for what he believed was right not only for him, but for all who played.

One of our readers, Blayke Tatman, a 7^th grader from Orange County, California, conducted a research project on Curt Flood for his National History Day Project.  To learn more about Flood and the history of free agency in baseball, stop by his website. You can also stop by his website and see what current players such as Gerald Laird and past players think about Flood, and what his decision to stand up against Baseball did for the game.

Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports notes that the Rangers have not made an offer to Oswalt, and that the Astros, Oswalt’s old team could also be a possibility.

Oswalt had received heavy interest from the Red Sox and Tigers, with the Tigers supposedly offering the right hander a one-year $10mm deal yesterday that he turned down.

In 2011, Oswalt went 9-10 while posting a 3.69 era in 139 innings with the Phillies. He did average a career low with 6.0 strike outs per 9 innings and is coming off a series of injuries. Oswalt earned $16mm last season and made $1,777,777.78 for every win or $172,043,01 for every strikeout.

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Lincecum will earn $18MM in 2012 and $22MM in 2013 to go along with a $500K signing bonus.  The deal also includes a limited no-trade clause that allows Lincecum to block a trade to a certain number of teams.

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