Teams to get $200K exemption for signing any of Braves' 12 former prospects
The Atlanta Braves were punished by Major League Baseball on Tuesday for their involvement in an international signing scandal which forced them to lose 12 prospects, including top prospect Kevin Maitan.
As a result of an investigation by MLB, former Braves general manager John Coppolella was placed on MLB's permanently ineligible list for his part in the scandal, while former Braves assistant Gordon Blakeley was given a one-year ban from working for any MLB club.
The 12 prospects, who will keep their original signing bonuses, return to the international amateur free-agent pool and are eligible to be signed by new clubs, according to MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo.
All 12 of the free agents are eligible to sign during a special signing period which begins Dec. 5 at 9 a.m. ET and ends Jan. 15, 2018 at 5 p.m. ET.
12 former Braves prospects who are now free agents
| Player | Pos. | Age | Year of Signing | Bonus |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin Maitan | SS | 17 | 2016 | $4.25M |
| Abrahan Gutierrez | C | 18 | 2016 | $3.5M |
| Yunior Severino | 2B | 18 | 2016 | $1.9M |
| Juan Contreras | RHP | 18 | 2016 | $1.2M |
| Yenci Pena | IF | 17 | 2016 | $1M |
| Yefri del Rosario | RHP | 18 | 2016 | $1M |
| Livan Soto | SS | 17 | 2016 | $1M |
| Guillermo Zuniga | RHP | 19 | 2016 | -- |
| Juan Carlos Negret | OF | 18 | 2016 | -- |
| Antonio Sucre | OF | 18 | 2016 | -- |
| Brandol Mezquita | OF | 17 | 2017 | -- |
| Angel Rojas | OF | 24 | 2017 | -- |
Mayo mentions that clubs interested in signing these 12 free agents will be given a financial exemption, with $200,000 of subsequent bonuses offered to the players not counting towards a team's international signing bonus pool.
Also, teams interested in the 12 players have the option of counting their bonus pool money toward the 2017-18 signing period or the 2018-19 one, although they cannot combine pool money from both periods.
As of Wednesday, the Texas Rangers ($3.535 million), New York Yankees ($3.5 million), and Minnesota Twins ($3.245 million) have the most international signing bonus pool money to spend in this period.