Brewers sign Dominican prospect Santo Aybar -- Latest: Signing Nixed by Vetting Process

[Hate those Rodents]

Saw this on mlbtraderumors via ESPN insider. Apparently he's a 16 year old and MLB has to verify his age for the deal to go through. Does anybody have any info on the kid?

[trwi7]

Found this blurb on him.

 

Domincian SS Santo Luis Aybar - right-handed; likely to move off SS (3B or OF); athletic but needs to work on mechanics; linked to Padres

He was projected to get the 18th highest signing bonus according to BA.

[colbyjack]

Since it's just part of a feature via BA, I thought I would share his scouting report one link off of the link that trwi7 provided:

 

The wiry Aybar is an aggressive hitter, swinging with a high leg kick to generate above-average raw power. He's a free swinger who scouts say will have to tone down his approach as he moves up the ladder. Some scouts like his aggressive approach, but his all-out swing gets him caught out front against breaking balls. Aybar is an above-average runner, with scouts timing him anywhere from 6.7 to 6.9 seconds in the 60-yard dash, though he's expected to lose speed as he adds muscle to his frame. Aybar has some athleticism, though scouts say his throwing motion is unusual and his defense is erratic, which could lead to him moving to center field, though there's a chance he could also handle third base. It's not clear with whom Aybar will sign.

[Funketown]

Is there any word on what the signing bonus was or will be?

 

I'm usually not a fan of chucking money at 16 year old prospects not named Bryce Harper, but we'll have to see how much they gave this kid.

[colbyjack]

I'm usually not a fan of chucking money at 16 year old prospects not named Bryce Harper, but we'll have to see how much they gave this kid.

 

That's an interesting comment, since most people would complain that the Brewers aren't spending enough money (at least up until the last year or two) on the international free agent market. They're not all going to work out, but similar to draft prospects, if you don't spend money on talent it's going to cost you in the long run.

[colbyjack]

BA has their take on the signing today, with quotes from Brewers' Latin American coordinator.

 

Milwaukee has made its second major signing this year in the Dominican Republic, this time agreeing to terms with shortstop Santo Aybar.

 

Aybar, who turns 17 on Saturday, still has to pass his investigation into his age and identity for the signing to become official, according to Fernando Arango, the Brewers coordinator of Latin American scouting. The Brewers also signed Dominican right fielder Jose Pena for $400,000 on July 2, the first day of the international signing period.

 

A righthanded hitter from Bani, Aybar is around 6-foot-3, 170 pounds, with Arango comparing his frame and power potential to Juan Encarnacion. Though Aybar is currently a shortstop, several scouts have said they expect him to move either to third base or the outfield, and Arango said he expects Aybar to fit in at third or second base.

[pingman]

Very good news.....

 

the Brewers have not done very well with Latin American free agents & a quick peek at the BA top 30 list proves this point..... it takes money but it's critical to find the best 16 & 17 year old prospects then develop them ....just can't rely on the draft alone

[HiAndTight]

Is there any word on what the signing bonus was or will be?

 

I'm usually not a fan of chucking money at 16 year old prospects not named Bryce Harper, but we'll have to see how much they gave this kid.

 

I'm a huge, huge fan of it.

 

Alcides Escobar signed for 33K and unless I'm mistaken, he was 16 when he signed.

 

Either way, you're usually going to sign a lot of Rolando Pascauls and Santo Aybar's before you're going to hit on a guy, but if you sign 10 of them and spend 4 million total and end up with just one Alcides Escobar, you're getting a great, great deal.

 

I like the Brewers newfound aggression on the Latin American market.

[ILuvDaBush]

Maybe I'm in the minority here but I would prefer if the Brewers would turn their eyes toward Asia. Many teams have begun to scout the most populous continent and I've never heard someone say, "Well you don't WALK yourself off the island" about a Japanese or Thai baseball player.

[HiAndTight]

Maybe I'm in the minority here but I would prefer if the Brewers would turn their eyes toward Asia. Many teams have begun to scout the most populous continent and I've never heard someone say, "Well you don't WALK yourself off the island" about a Japanese or Thai baseball player.

I think that saying is a little overblown when it comes to 16 year old Latin American kids.

 

Just because they feel as though they have to go after pitches and try and make an impression that walking will not accomplish to the scouts does not mean they can't be fixed of that as they age.

 

For all the Vlad's, there are lots of LA players who work the count and take lots of walks.

 

 

Also, given the number of studs coming over from Latin America as opposed to Asia, coupled with the fact that they have a League over there so that everyone knows about the best players, I'd just assume we continue to focus on Latin America.

[Invader3K]

I think Melvin has said they don't scout Asia because it's too expensive for them. They've found they're better served focusing their resources on Latin America. I think they share their academy down there with the Orioles, so that helps them save money, too.

[Mass Haas]

From a prior post on this forum:

RHP Rolando Pascual, 2005 -- $710,000
OF Jose Garcia, 2007 -- $550,000
RHP Wily Peralta, 2005 -- $450,000
SS Yohannis Perez, 2006 (DR via Cuba) -- $450,000
OF Hitaniel Arias, 2007 -- $450,000
RHP Roque Mercedes, 2004 -- $375,000

Garcia and Arias a combined $1,000,000 in '07, significant investments.

I would contend that the Brewers have actually received decent bang for their buck given the circumstances. Instead of fielding 30-40 man Dominican Summer League squads in recent years along with the costs of maintaining an academy, their more selective spending earned them Peralta, who should be considered a "hit", and Mercedes, one as well, a chip in the Felipe Lopez deal now on Arizona's 40-man roster. Pascual and Perez were obviously big misses, while Garcia and Arias remain possibilities.

But more impressive are the oft-mentioned Alcides Escobar at $33,000, RHP and new 40-man member Amaury Rivas a mere $30,000 in 2005, and some usefulness out of Hernan Iribarren for only $15,000 in 2002.

I think they share their academy down there with the Orioles, so that helps them save money, too.

They provided the combined 2009 Orioles / Brewers entry in the DSL with 14 players. To put that in some perspective, the Orioles maintain a second full DSL squad of their own, and the Cubs, among a few others, I believe, fill two full squads. It'll be interesting to see if there's a single Brewer entity in 2010.

[Mass Haas]

Adam McCalvy's mailbag discusses Aybar and also includes this:

 

The Brewers opened their own training facility north of the Dominican capital of Santo Domingo, the first time since 2003 that Milwaukee has a standalone presence in Latin America. The Brewers had ceased operating an academy soon after Melvin and assistant GM Gord Ash were hired and put that money toward higher-profile signings, but resumed a presence this year in a co-venture with the Orioles. The new facility is an existing complex previously owned by the Phillies, complete with two baseball fields, batting cages, housing and mess facilities and classroom space where players are instructed in English, among other topics. The idea is to prepare these 16-19-year-olds to eventually move to affiliates in the U.S.

Seid was impressed with what he saw and praised Brewers special assistants Reid Nichols and Dan O'Brien for their work in setting it up. Outfielders Jose Pena (who received a $400,000 signing bonus when he signed with the Brewers in July) and Juan Barrini show the most promise, said Seid, who was also impressed by another shortstop named Andres Martinez, who signed in November 2008, reportedly for $225,000. The pitcher who most caught Seid's eye was Adrian Rosario, a right-hander who has been in the organization since 2006. Rosario, who turned 20 in September, pitched 14 games for the Brewers' advanced rookie affiliate in Helena, Mont., in 2009 and had a 5.06 ERA.

[Mass Haas]

The Brewers are definitely going with their own DSL squad next season, and will not be sharing players with the Orioles.

 

That's quite a few players they're going to have to sign to field a full squad, and we probably won't get a sense of them all until the media guide is out in March.

 

You've got to figure an older, productive player like C / DH Jhonatan Javier is going to be brought state-side.

[battlekow]

Great article from Adam McCalvy on the Brewers' Dominican presence and what they've learned from failed prospects like Rolando Pascual:

 

 

"Here is the difference," Valles said. "With American kids, the dream is

to make it to the Major Leagues. In our culture, the dream is to sign

the contract.

 

 

"It's a different mindset, and these kids might not even realize it, but

all they train for, all they work for, is just to get signed. Once they

get signed, some of them make the mental adjustment to change their

dream. But it is a very marginal percentage. I saw that myself."

 

...

 

 

Valles realizes that this may sound a bit strange to the American kids

who work hard their whole lives and aren't lucky enough to be handed a

professional contract. But he points to the fact that as more clubs tune

into the cultural side of international player development, more

players are advancing to the U.S. Minor Leagues. Valles does not have

any official statistics, but thinks the figure could be as high as 35 or

40 percent.

 

 

Still, that means fewer than 15 of the 36 players currently working at

the academy in the Dominican Republic will make it, and then only a

small percentage of those kids will make it to Milwaukee.

 

[TooLiveBrew]

The pictures in that blog post are really cool. I'm pretty sure that's Melvin in the gray top --

 

http://brewersbeat.mlblogs.com/assets_c/2010/03/Dominican%202010-thumb-550x412-1846071.jpg

[Mass Haas]

This thread, which began in November, isn't all that lengthy, and we invite everyone to re-read it now.

The reason is that we now know that SS/3B Santo Aybar, prominently mentioned in the thread above, won't be joining the Brewers after all, as he failed the investigation as to age / identity, although we don't know in which way. Regardless, he's not a Brewer, and apparently won't be.

Just this week Baseball America ran a feature on bringing in Sandy Alderson to focus on MLB's operations in the Dominican. It's not surprising that the Brewers have had other potential candidates also fail this "vetting process", none quite so prominently identified as Aybar, but it's better to find out before the fact than after, right?

We also have this new thread post with more details on the Brewers' planned DSL summer league team for 2010.

[battlekow]

I thought this article from 7/22/99 -- "Brewers baseball academy cultivating promising young players" -- would be a fun trip down memory lane, though it's actually from before my time as a prospect watcher.

[biedergb]

I remember that article well. That is pre-BF.net days, when I got most of my info from the JS-Online. I was really excited and watched Cristian and Hector closely, even penciling them into my future Brewers starting line-up back then (with Gold/Neugie as #1/#2 starters of course).