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.

This past season, Maholm posted an ugly 6-14 record but had a 3.66 era in 162 1/3 innings. In seven seasons, all in Pittsburgh, Maholm accumulated a 4.36 era with a 53-73 record.

Maholm made $5.75mm last season and became a free agent after his $9.75mm team option was declined for ‘12.

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Bowker played in 31 Major League games in 2011 with the Phillies and the Pittsburgh Pirates and hit .133 with two RBIs.

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Cedeno made $1.85mm last season with the Pirates while hitting .249 in 454 at-bats.

Cedeno became a free agent when the Pirates declined his option for the upcoming season.

Check out PRO Rumors free agent tracker for details surrounding all the free agent signings this offseason.

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The Brewers agreed to a three-year deal with Aramis Ramirez earlier today.  That move made McGehee expandable for Milwaukee.

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Hefner, 25, has a record of 46-34 with a 3.84 ERA in 131 appearances (120 starts) over five Minor League seasons

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The Pirates have designated catcher Jason Jaramillo for assignment in order to make room for Bedard on the 40-man roster adds Langosch.

Bedard was 5-9 with a 3.62 ERA in 129.1 innings in 24 starts for the Red Sox and Mariners in 2011.

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The Braves turned down McLouth’s $10.65mm option for 2012 thus opening the door for him to return to the team he spent the previous five seasons with.

In 267 at-bats in 2011, McLouth hit .228 with 61 total hits.

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– Five teams (including the Texas Rangers) are in the hunt for C.J. Wilson and one of them has made a six-year offer.  (Jeff Wilson, Star-Telegram)

– The Twins, Nationals, Marlins and Rangers are in on Mark Buehrle. (Ken Rosenthal, FOX Sports)

– The Royals, Marlins, Twins, Athletics and Mariners are interested in Carlos Guillen. (Enrique Rojas, ESPNDeportesLosAngeles)

– According to Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post, the Miami Marlins (formerly Florida Marlins), plan to tender Juan Carlos Oviedo (formerly Leo Nunez).

– The Tigers, Blue Jays and Padres have inquired about Daniel Murphy from the Mets. (Joel Sherman, The New York Post)

– The Arizona Diamondbacks are looking for a starter, and according to Steve Henson of Yahoo Sports, they’re targeting right handed pitcher Hiroki Kuroda.

– Josh Willingham have been contacted by nine teams according to Jerry Crasnick of ESPN. That list includes the Twins, Red Sox, Indians and Reds adds Crasnick.

– Joe Capozzi of the Palm Beach Post says that the Philadelphia Phillies are “strong players”for third baseman Aramis Ramirez.

– The Los Angeles Angels have been inquiring about Andrew Bailey according to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.

– The St. Louis Cardinals have been talking to Octavio Dotel according to Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated.

– The Pittsburgh Pirates “may add another outfielder” according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports. And according to sources close to him, they are interested in former Pirate Nate McLouth.

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– The Minnesota Twins are interested in Jeff Francis according to Jon Paul Morosi of FOXSports. A source close to him says the team already had initial talks with Francis’ agent, and the sides will probably have further discussions at the winter meetings in Dallas next week. The team is also interested in right handed pitcher Edwin Jackson according to Morosi.

– The Nationals, Rangers, Indians and Pirates have all spoke to free agent infielder Mark DeRosa. (Ken Rosenthal, FOX Sports)

– According to Tom Haudricourt of the Journal-sentinel, the Milwaukee Brewers and third baseman Aramis Ramirez have mutual interest. “He has expressed interest in us, too,” GM, Doug Melvin said. “That’s something I always like to hear.”

– Short stop Alex Gonzalez has been drawing interest from the San Francisco Giants, St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers according to Jon Heyman of Sprots Illustrated (via Francisco Zambrano of LiderEnDeportes)

– Jorge Posada, who owns a house in Miami, says he still wants to play if he finds the right job reports Jon Heyman of Sports Illustrated. He adds that Posada would like to join the Marlins if they consider him.

– The Houston Astros are apparently shopping not only Wandy Rodriguez, but Brett Myers and Carlos Lee too says Heyman.

– The Rockies, who are willing to trade Ian Stewart, say that they are interested in Cubs’ infielder Blake DeWitt according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post.

– The Minnesota Twins are interested in left handed pitcher Chris Capuano according to La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

– Infielder Eric Chavez wants to play in 2012 and according to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle, there are several teams interested in signing him. She adds that the Yankees might be one of them.

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Evans hit .256/.314/.403 with 4 HR’s and 25 RBI’s in 176 AB’s for the New York Mets in 2011.

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In the book’s preface, the author quotes work done by a Manhattan lawyer named Doug Pappas. Pappas, says that a team with only minimum wage players, both on the Major League roster and the rest of the 40-man, would still probably win 49 out of the 162 games played.

In 2011, the minimum wage for a player on the 25-man roster was $414,500. The minimum wage for a player on the 40-man roster, with at least one day of MLB service time or had been on the 40-man roster for a year was $67,300.

The minimum that a team could spend on their 40-man roster in 2011 was: $11,397,000. That’s $10,387,500 for their 25-man roster and $1,009,500 for the rest of their 40-man roster. If a team could get approximately 49 wins with a $11,397,000 payroll, that means that if you divide the total wins a team got above their 49th win by the total dollars they paid over the minimum, you get the “price” each team paid for each win they got.

After this brief introduction of the “marginal win” formula, I’m going to say what this report is all about. I’m going to analyze the “price” for each win a team got in 2011 so we can determine which teams were the most cost effective. Besides that, I’m going to list the top 5 paid players on each team and give you their performance line, to see how much they actually contributed to their team.

I’ll also list each team’s OBP, runs and SLG totals so we can see for ourselves how related these stats are at the moment of scoring runs and winning games. So get ready to experience a thoughtful analysis of every 2011 Major league team.

The team’s payroll was taken from USA Today and the individuals salaries from About.com.

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Brink says that after declining Paul Maholm’s option, the team will try to add some rotation depth. The Rockies declined Cook’s $11 million option for 2012 as well.

In 2011, Cook was 3-10 with a 6.03 ERA in 97 innings throughout 18 games, 17 starts with the Colorado Rockies.

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Fox hit .246/.313/.443 with 2 HR’s and 6 RBI’s in 61 AB’s for the Orioles in 2011. Martis last pitched in the Majors in 2009 with the Nationales. That season he went 5-3 with a 5.25 ERA in 85.2 innings throughout 15 starts.

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“In talking with my agent and talking with the club, they were wanting to make a decision and they wanted to know by pretty much yesterday who their shortstop was going to be so they could continue to move on,” Barmes said. “It was one of those things they had a few others guys lined up behind me, and the way it was explained to me I was the first in line as far as who they wanted. They threw a great offer.”

A couple of days ago, we learned that Barmes and the Pirates were close to a two-year deal. Barmes hit .244/.312/.386 with 12 HR’s and 39 RBI’s in 446 AB’s for the Astros in 2011.

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Barmes will be 33 on Opening Day 2012.  In 2011 with the Houston Astros, Barmes hit .244/.312/.386 in 123 games.

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The team also added infeilder Matt Hague, outfielder Starling Marte, infielder Jordy Mercer, left-handed pitcher Rudy Owens, right-handed pitcher Duke Welker and left-handed pitcher Justin Wilson to the team’s 40-man roster.

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The 32-year-old spent most of his career in Detroit and is liked by his peers for his “leadership and confident, easygoing demeanor.”

He his .260/.311/.384 during his 2011 campaign with the Tigers.

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