By ,
Published May 02, 2016
Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - The casual baseball fan will tell you that right-hander James Shields is the best remaining free agent available.
They'd be wrong though.
The most sought after player on the market became available to everyone on Tuesday, as Major League Baseball eased up on its rules with regards to Cuban ballplayers and opened the doors for an all-out bidding war for 19-year-old infielder Yoan Moncada.
Cuban players had needed to obtain specific unblocking license from the Office of Foreign Assets Control before they were to enter into an agreement with a team.
But given the new relationship between the U.S. and Cuba, MLB took action and distributed a memo to teams stating that players who present sworn affidavits to it stating they are residents of another country, have no intention of returning to Cuba and are not Cuban government officials can sign with major league teams immediately.
Moncada, who has taken up residence in Guatemala, could fetch a deal close to $40 million. However, since he is under 23 years of age and considered an amateur, he is still subject to the international signing guidelines.
Basically how that works is that each team is allotted a $700,000 base and a bonus pool based on the team's record in 2013 for the international signing period, which started on July 2 and ends on June 15.
Now, of course, teams have gone over their bonus pools and teams like the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox have actually gone over by more than 15- percent, putting them in the maximum penalty range for the upcoming 2015-16 signing period.
More than likely, though, any team that goes after Moncada is going to exceed its pool.
The penalty will include a 100 percent tax on their pool, meaning, of course, that a potential Moncada investment could total close to $80 million.
But, don't think for a second that means teams will stay away from a player like Moncada, who most observers think will become one of the best prospects in baseball the minute he puts his name on the dotted line.
After making a name for himself by dominating the 16-and-under and 18-and- under leagues in Cuba, Moncada debuted for Cienfuegos in Cuba's Serie Nacional at age 17 and hit .277 during parts of two seasons. He's a switch-hitting middle infielder - probably more of a second baseman - who hits for average, has power, above-average runner, good arm.
Still, some feel the 6-foot, 210-pounder's future may be at third base.
Given the high price tag you can probably already guess who will be amongst the bidders. In addition to the Yankees and Red Sox, Moncada has also held private workouts for the San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, Texas Rangers, Tampa Bay Rays, Milwaukee Brewers and Detroit Tigers.
And you can't count out the Dodgers, either, although, more than half the league will take interest now that he is freely available. That's how good some people view him.
Quite simply, everyone will be in on him.
Speaking of Shields, he is supposedly close to finding a team and could be under contract by the end of the week. Where he is going, though, is anyone's guess.
The St. Louis Cardinals have been the team most recently identified with him. Shields was believed to be in the market for a 5-year, $125 million deal. That probably won't happen now, as he may have to settle for a 3- or 4-year deal in the $80 million range.
Shields has started 33 or 34 games for seven straight seasons and has never been injured. Maybe he rolls the dice and signs a monster 1-year deal and does this all again next winter?
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/rounding-third-who-is-yoan-moncada