Yankees International Signings

The Yankees were able to sign Hans Montero, one of their top two targets in the international signing period, losing out on Venezuelan catcher Jesus Galiz to the Dodgers. They were also able to sign Fidel Montero (no relation to Hans), Ramiro Altagracia, Kleiner Delgado and Johan Ferreira. The Yankees were also connected to pitcher Oscar Colas and pitcher Fausto Sanchez but they have yet to sign them. The Yankees are the favorite to sign both consensus number 1 international prospect Roderick Arias and number 3 international prospect Diedo Benitez in 2022. The Yankees only had $4,232,700 in bonus money to dish out. Teams couldn’t trade for bonus pool money for the 2020-21 period as they could in previous years. They also lost a million in bonus money when they signed Gerrit Cole before the 2020 season. They have been one of the most productive teams in Latin America over the last decade under director of international scouting Donny Rowland leaving me with confidence in these 5 signings. So let’s get to know a little bit about each of the five international signings shall we! I’m most excited to see both Monteros and Ferreira.


At just 17 years old Hans Montero signed for 1.7 million out of the Dominican Republic. Montero is a shade behind the top 2 SS in the class Carlos Colmenarez (Rays) and Christian Hernandez (Cubs) in terms of tools and overall future projections. The right-hand hitting shortstop projects to have above average tools across the board that should help keep him as a shortstop in the long term. Montero has a quality approach and the ability to make contact to all fields. He barrels the ball very well using his gap power. As he puts on muscle and his body fills his 5’10” 160 lb frame, I expect him to have above average power. He also possesses plus speed on the base-paths. In the field he has smooth actions and soft hands. His best tool is his arm.


Fidel Montero is originally listed as a shortstop and has been playing outfield for the past few seasons and made himself a prospect to notice. The Dominican stands 6’0” and weighs 165 pounds. A right-handed hitter, Montero participated in a 2019 showcase outside of Chicago with 50 talents of the Dominican Republic across multiple international free agent classes and that’s where he caught many evaluators’ eyes. He also had a breakout season in the 2019 Dominican Prospect League as a 15 year old. Montero has impressive raw tools but inconsistent performance in games. This inconsistency is one of the problems that led to a lower prospect stock and is something the Yankees will have to fix. I believe the Yankees can fix him and he’s young enough to grow and have a fantastic future. He could be a true steal in the J2 signing period.

Johan Ferreira is a third baseman from the Dominican Republic who just turned 18 in October. Ferreira owns a short, powerful swing and good batting instincts. Ferreira has good power due to his quick hands and natural swing. During a 2018 event held by the IPL (International Prospects League) the ball was recorded leaving Ferreiras bat at 104 MPH by Flightscope Baseball. He is able to play both the hot corner and second base. I envision him staying at third base with the lack of depth there within the Yankees farm system. In 2014 and 2015 he was part of the Dominican team in the Cal Ripken World Series in Maryland. He also represented his country in the Home Run Derby each year. In 2015 and 2016 he also played in the Scotiabank Little League Classic. Before signing with the Yankees, he developed his skills at Academia Alianza under Javier Rodriguez. Ferreira also has a great command of the English language which should help his development.

The right-hand hitting outfielder Ramiro Altagracia signed with the Yankees from the Dominican stands 6’0″ and is 185 lbs. At just 17 years old he has a nice combination of speed and power with the ability to hit to all fields. He has an average arm and should be able to play centerfield with ease.

Venezuelan switch-hitting shortstop Kleiner Delgado owns average power and speed. Right now it’s mostly pull power. Smooth fielder that should stick at shortstop.

Paul Woodin is a huge sports fan who leads the New York Yankees minor league farm system coverage for the Prospects1500 team. Growing up playing and watching baseball while collecting baseball cards, Paul developed a love for the game. Born and raised in Connecticut between Yankees and Red Sox territory, Paul become a Yankees fan because of Don Mattingly and Derek Jeter. An avid sports card, memorabilia and autograph collector, he participates in redraft, dynasty and prospect-only fantasy baseball formats during each season. Feel free to reach out on Twitter
@PaulWoodin1.




13 Comments

    • Hi Peter. I don’t honestly know. It really depends on how much Roderick Arias and Diedo Benitez cost and if they sign both of them. They may take most of what’s available. If one or the other doesn’t or both of them don’t sign with NY I believe the Yankees will be all in on Oscar Colas and Fausto Sanchez for sure.

    • Hey Peter as far as I can tell he has not signed anywhere yet. Even after I did some digging. Not really sure what happened with him…

  1. Did anything ever happened to Fausto Sanchez? A YouTuber had said his fastball was at 91 which was lower than before and why teh Yanks didnt sign him.

  2. Hey Adrian
    There has not been much of anything about Sanchez anywhere. I checked with multiple outlets. Not really sure what happened to him.

    • Hey Peter I don’t think the Yankees will be able to sign both Mayea and Jun-Seok Shim. The signing pool for the Yankees is $5,284,000 which Mayea probably ties up most of for the Yankees. But I’d love to see Shim in New York! Hopefully the Red Sox don’t sign him!

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