According to a report from MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez, the Cubs have landed what many consider the top international prospect, Dominican outfielder Eloy Jimenez.
The Cubs have been considered the favorite to sign Jimenez and according to Sanchez’s report, Jimenez and his family chose the Cubs despite receiving a bigger offer from another team. Sanchez reported that an announcement is expected in the next few days.
According to Jesse Sanchez, Eloy Jimenez and his family love Sammy Sosa and the idea of playing at Wrigley Field one day. Sanchez indicated that dreams matter to him.
Jimenez is 6-foot-4, 200 pounds and the 16-year old is athletic for his size. According to Baseball America, Jimenez ran the 60-yard dash in 6.72 seconds in January. Jimenez figures to slow down once he gets bigger and projects as a corner outfielder. Jimenez has good hand-eye coordination, a quick bat and uses the middle of the field. Jimenez has raw power with a flat swing, that can sometimes get long, that produces line drives. Some think Jimenez could develop above-average power.
Scouts have reportedly been impresses with Jimenez’s intelligence, speed and gap-to-gap power.
Recent reports have indicated Eloy Jimenez could receive between $2.5-$2.7 million signing bonus.
The Cubs added to their international pool money with the deals they made on Tuesday.
The Cubs have reportedly signed Dominican right-handed pitcher Jefferson Mejia for $850,000, Colombian right-handed pitcher Erling Moreno and Venezuelan shortstop Gleyber Torres for $1.7 million. The Cubs have spent $3,335,000 of their $5,520,300 bonus pool but can add more via trades.
- Cubs Sign Dominican RHP Jefferson Mejia
- Cubs Sign Venezuelan Shortstop Gleyber Torres
- Cubs Sign Colombian RHP Erling Moreno