MLB Pipeline has been ranking international prospects since 2012. For the first time, the Tigers have landed a player in the Top 5 at the opening of the international signing period, agreeing to a deal with the No. 4 overall prospect.
Meet Cris Rodriguez, a 6-foot-4, 200-pound right-handed-hitting outfielder from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, who far and away boasts the most power in his class.
Rodriguez’s deal is worth $3,197,500, making it the largest bonus that the Tigers have handed out to an international free agent. (Cristian Santana previously received $2.95 million in 2021.) The club received $7.56 million in pool money this year.
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“Obviously the physical ability, we believe to be special,” assistant general manager Rob Metzler said. “The bat speed, the power, the bat path. We love the athleticism, the frame, the natural projection. I’d follow that up by saying we feel strongly about the kid. This is a kid we’ve gotten to know really well. The work ethic, character, aptitude are, we believe, to be pluses. That’s what he’s shown us over a significant amount of time. And we’re excited to be able to sign him today.”
“We’re pretty excited about having Cris in our organization now,” added Miguel Garcia, the Tigers’ Latin America scouting director. “A kid who has a tremendous set of tools that we hope will develop in a nice way and help him to go through our system in a nice way. His baseball IQ and the way that he goes about his business is going to help him to develop and be a good prospect.”
The Tigers also announced five other signings on Wednesday as the international signing period opened, including Dominican Republic infielder Sterling Brazil, Venezuelan catcher Carlos Benavides, Dominican infielder Angel De Los Santos, Venezuelan left-handed pitcher Anderson Diaz and Venezuelan outfielder Jose Ramirez.
“These are all players that have attributes we think can develop to compete incredibly well in our system and ultimately advance to make an impact in Detroit someday,” Metzler said.
There is All-Star-caliber upside coiled up in Rodriguez’s swing. He has done damage during every step of his amateur career, consistently generating extra-base hits, which becomes all the more impressive when factoring in that opponents are well aware of the hype that surrounds his power profile. At present, there are some swing-and-miss concerns, but scouts point to his pitch recognition skills as a way of counteracting unease.
While Rodriguez has gotten looks in center field as an amateur, his frame will almost assuredly move him to a corner spot (likely right) as he gets acclimated to pro ball. He has the plus throwing arm that would profile well alongside his slugging prowess, although the club isn’t likely to put any sort of cap on his skill set.
“Everything started with our area scout, Rodolfo Peñalo, he did a tremendous job identifying the talent,” Garcia said. “And then the process began. Probably for the last two years, we have been following Cris’ development, and that’s what led us to the final decision to offer him a contract.”
Detroit has recently not shied away from handing out a sizable bonus on the international scene in order to land a prospect the organization believes has impact potential: Roberto Campos (Detroit's No. 25 prospect) in 2019, Santana in '21, Jose Osorio in '22. None of the trio has found sustained success in the club’s system, but one player's track record has no bearing on another's. Many evaluators believed that prior to Roki Sasaki joining the '25 class, Rodriguez was in legitimate consideration for No. 1 overall international prospect status.
While the Tigers added a pair of Top 100 overall prospects to their big league club this past fall (Jackson Jobe, Jace Jung), they still have seven of their Top 10 prospects at A-ball or lower. Max Clark is the No. 6 overall prospect. Bryce Rainer (Tigers' No. 4/MLB No. 56) was regarded by many as the top high school player in the 2024 class. Josue Briceño (Tigers' No. 9) became the first player to hit for the Triple Crown in the history of the Arizona Fall League a few months ago.
On top of all that, Detroit now gets to add Rodriguez, arguably its most hyped international signing to date, to the mix.
Benavides has been developing in the Dominican for the last two years, according to Garcia, who said the catcher has “good defensive tools.” But his bat is his “calling card,” Garcia said.
Ramirez has catching experience, but the Tigers are signing him as a center fielder. A plus runner, Ramirez also has potential for a plus arm.
“Definitely a guy that will develop some gap to gap power, ability to hit for average, and he’s an athlete,” Garcia said. “The way he moves around makes us believe he’s going to be able to play center field at Comerica Park.”
De Los Santos is a middle infielder, and Garcia mentioned that the way De Los Santos is developing physically has the Tigers excited about what’s to come. Brazil is a switch-hitting middle infielder who has versatility, Garcia said, and the potential to be a utility player as he develops. And Diaz, the pitcher, has grown rapidly since the Tigers first started scouting him.
“He’s got close to an average fastball right now and a really good feel for pitching,” Garcia said.
An international player is eligible to sign with a Major League team between Jan. 15 and Dec. 15. He must turn 16 before he signs and be 17 before Sept. 1 the following year.
That means players born between Sept. 1, 2007, and Aug. 31, 2008, will be eligible to sign in the current signing period. Players must be registered with Major League Baseball in advance to be eligible to sign.
Additional notable Tigers signees and their bonuses:
Jose Ramirez, OF (Venezuela) -- $897,500
Carlos Benavides, C (Venezuela) -- $797,500
Anderson Diaz, LHP (Venezuela) -- $447,500
Jhonger Ochoa, INF, Venezuela -- $397,500
Angel De Los Santos, INF (Dominican Republic) -- $387,500