Players, Espada connect with Astros' international signees

This story was excerpted from Brian McTaggart’s Astros Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

HOUSTON -- The excitement of fulfilling a dream by signing with the Astros last week came with another benefit for a handful of international players -- hearing words of encouragement from Major League players Yainer Diaz and Cristian Javier and manager Joe Espada.

Espada made the trip to the Dominican Republic to attend Thursday’s signing ceremony at the Astros’ academy. He asked Diaz and Javier, who live in the Dominican, to join him and meet the eight international free agents who agreed to contracts. Seven of the eight players are 17 years old, and one is 16 years old.

It will be a long road before any of them reaches the Major Leagues, if they even do, but Espada wanted to offer advice and remind them that the next step in the dream isn’t as far as it may seem. Espada met the players and their parents and welcomed them to the organization.

“I had a few words and told them the work begins now,” Espada said. "I talked about the challenges they’ll confront moving forward, but also the people that they have to support them and that they have to help them reach their goals and their dreams. I had some time to spend with faculty and I think that’s also very important.”

The Astros signed four players from the Dominican Republic, two from Venezuela and one player each from Cuba and Mexico. Despite receiving just $5,440,000 in pool money (tied for the smallest allotment in the Majors), Houston was able to land a pair of impact signees. Albert Fermín (No. 19 overall) will command a $2.1 million signing bonus and Randy Arias (No. 37) around $1.4 million.

The signed players will live and train at the Astros’ academy and play in the Dominican Summer League later this year. Diaz played in the DSL as an 18-year-old with Cleveland in 2017 (he was traded to Houston in 2021), and Javier was signed by the Astros a week before his 18th birthday in 2015 for $10,000 and played his first year in the DSL.

“I wanted the [young] players to hear from the players who have actually stepped foot in the academy and what they went through to get to the big leagues,” Espada said. “It’s not impossible if you work hard and have discipline, and Yainer and Javy touched on those things. I told them it happens quick. They are here one day and three or four years from now they’re knocking on the doors to be at the Major League level.”

Espada watched video of all the players the Astros signed prior to his trip so he could become familiar with them. He won’t stop there. He says he plans to follow their progress throughout the season via the reports the Astros’ staff in the Dominican will be sending to him.

“I want them to know, as the Major League manager, I’m always reading the report,” Espada said. “I want to know who’s the next player who’s going to help us at the Major League level that’s going to come out of our [Dominican] complex. It means a lot for them to hear from me, but also some of our players.”

One of the most difficult parts of the journey for young players signed out of Latin America is making the transition to the United States in the future. The Astros will give them tools to succeed, including English classes, but at some point they will make the move to the team’s facility in West Palm Beach, Fla. Espada hopes a familiar face will make it a bit easier.

“They’re not seeing a stranger,” Espada said. “They know me and we have talked and that helps them with overcoming some of the anxiety that happens when you get to the States. I always wanted to do that and I’m glad I got the chance.”