Rays sign international free agent Jelfry Marte
The Rays make another big addition in international free agency.
Tampa Bay may have been eliminated from the Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes earlier than it would have liked, but the Japanese star was not the only talented player available on the market. The Rays signed international free agent shortstop Jelfry Marte, according to MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez.
Source: Jelfry Marte has agreed to a deal with the Rays. Marte originally signed with the Twins for $3M but his contract was voided because of a vision issue. Could mean Rays are trading for int’l money. They have est. $440K to spend during the current int’l period. @MLBPipeline
— Jesse Sanchez (@JesseSanchezMLB) December 12, 2017
Marte was originally signed by Minnesota on July 2 for $3 million. However, the Twins voided the agreement in November due to a vision issue.
The 16-year-old Dominican shortstop was ranked as the No. 13 international player available in the 2017 signing period by Baseball America ($). According to BA’s report, he’s a true shortstop with speed and baserunning acumen. Whether the switch hitter makes an impact at the plate is the question.
Marte will be getting around $800,000 from the Rays, according to Star Tribune Twins writer LaVelle Neal.
In recent years, the Rays have not been afraid to aggressively pursue high-priced international talent. In Marte’s class, they added BA’s No. 1 player, shortstop Wander Franco, for $3.85 million. Other recent players that have received seven-figure bonuses include pitchers Jose Mujica and Jose Castillo, infielder Adrian Rondon, and trade acquisition Lucius Fox, who was signed by the Giants before being included in the 2016 trade for Matt Moore.