Tag Archives: Yoenis Cespedes

Tomas to Join the Arizona Diamondbacks

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Yasmany Tomas has 68-million reasons to love the Grand Canyon State…

The 24-year-old Cuban slugger has agreed to a six-year deal worth $68.5 million with the Arizona Diamondbacks, according to a report by MLB.com.

Yasmany Tomas

The report, which cites industry sources, states that the deal is believed to include an opt-out clause after four years.

Tomas would become the latest Cuban star to sign a lucrative contract with a major league team, joining Jose Abreu, Rusney Castillo, Yasiel Puig, Yoenis Cespedes and Aroldis Chapman.

Tomas, a corner outfielder, has spent a portion of the last seven years playing for the Havana Industriales. He batted .375 (6 for 16) for Cuba with two homers and five RBIs in last year’s World Baseball Classic.

In total dollars among Cuban players, Tomas’ deal would fall just short of the $72.5 million, seven-year contract agreed to in August between Castillo and the Boston Red Sox. The $11.42 million average would be just above Abreu’s $11.33 million average in the $68 million, six-year deal he agreed to with the Chicago White Sox in October 2011. Abreu went on to win AL Rookie of the Year.

Cespedes Wins the Home Run Derby Crown for Second Straight Year

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Yoenis Cespedes’ reign at the Home Run Derby continues…

The 28-year-old Cuban baseball star, an outfielder for the Oakland Athletics, has become the first repeat winner of the All-Star skills contest in 15 years.

Yoenis Cespedes

Cespedes powered his way past the Cincinnati Reds’ Todd Frazier 9-1 in the final round Monday night to successfully defend his title.

Ken Griffey Jr. was the last back-to-back winner, taking the title in 1998 and 1999.

With a serious, determined look on his face the entire time, Cespedes finished with 28 homers. That was four fewer than last year, when he beat the Washington Nationals‘ Bryce Harper 9-8 in the final round.

Cespedes even told Athletics teammate Josh Donaldson he was doing this wrong.

“I knew he wasn’t going to win because his mentality was to take the ball out of the stadium, and I told him that is not the way you win this competition,” Cespedes said through an interpreter.

He added: “I’m somebody who’s very conscious of the power that I have. So I don’t need to put more of a swing or more of an effort in order to hit a home run. I just have to look for a good pitch and put a good swing on it, and it usually takes care of it.”

Cespedes saved his best for last, a 452-foot blast to the third deck above left field that officially measured as the longest shot of the night.

A’s third-base coach Mike Gallego again pitched to Cespedes, who went deep 32 times in last year’s derby at Citi Field in New York. Gallego’s arm looked nearly out of gas by the final round.

“Maybe next year I’ll put up a better showing at the end,” Frazier said. “Now that I understand, maybe I’ll do a couple of more push-ups.”

Cespedes topped Toronto’s Jose Bautista and Frazier surprisingly beat Miami’s Giancarlo Stanton in the semifinals.

Bautista to Captain the American League’s Home Run Derby Team

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It’s batter up for José Bautista…

The 33-year-old Dominican professional baseball player, a right fielder for the Toronto Blue Jays, will serve as the American League’s captain for the Home Run Derby.

José Bautista

Bautista, the 2010 and 2011 MLB home run champion and a five-time Major League Baseball All-Star, will have some star power on his team. He’s selected reigning derby champ and Oakland Athletics’ star Yoenis Cespedes, the Minnesota Twins’ Brian Dozierand the Baltimore Orioles’ Adam Jones as the top three picks for his team.

They’ll face off a Nation League team that includes captain and Colorado Rockies star Troy Tulowitzki, and his top three picks: the Cincinnati Reds’ Todd Frazier, the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Yasiel Puig and the Miami Marlins’ Giancarlo Stanton.

An additional fifth member will be named to each team on Thursday.

“Bunch of guys with a lot of power,” Tulowitzki said of his team. “More than that, I think they’re good guys, got to know them throughout the years.”

Stanton is the only player in the National League group that ranks in the top five in the majors in home runs with 21 entering play Tuesday night, but he is the NL-leader in the category.

That means that only one member of the remaining top five home run hitters in the league will be added to Bautista’s side. He has a choice of Baltimore’s Nelson Cruz (28), the Chicago White Sox‘s Jose Abreu (27) and Detroit Tigers‘ Victor Martinez (21).

Bautista’s Toronto teammate Edwin Encarnacion is third in the league with 26 home runs, but is currently on the disabled list. Martinez might also bow out of the running as he’s been held out of recent games due to injury.

Fellow Tiger Miguel Cabrera (14) and Los Angeles Angels phenom Mike Trout (20) have already said they will not participate in the contest, which will be held Monday night on ESPN from Minnesota’s Target Field.

Stanton, Tulowitzki (18) and Frazier (17) are all in the top five in homers in the National League along with the Chicago Cubs‘ Anthony Rizzo (18) and Philadelphia Phillies‘ Marlon Byrd (18).

Also a possibility for the final NL spot is Tulowitzki’s teammate and former Minnesota Twinsplayer Justin Morneau. Morneau is a candidate in the Final Vote to make the All-Star team.

“If he wins that final vote, there’s possibly a chance,” Tulowitzki said. “I think it would make a storyline. Played with the Twins all those years. He’s definitely on the list if he makes the team. There are some other guys as well that have lobbied and would be good choices.”

Puig to Play Ball for the Los Angeles Dodgers

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It’s Lucky No. 7, of sorts, for Yasiel Puig…

The 21-year-old Cuban outfielder has reportedly reached agreement on a seven-year, $42 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, according to ESPNdeportesLosAngeles.com.

Yasiel Puig

Puig’s agreement is pending a physical exam, and would be the largest dollar figure accorded a Cuban defector, surpassing the four-year, $36 million deal Oakland Athletics outfielder Yoenis Céspedes received in February.

“Puig’s contract with the Dodgers should be completed by Friday. The young man could play in the major leagues this year, maybe in time to help with the race for the playoffs or the World Series,” said the source, who added that the agreement includes some clauses that could permit Puig to become a free agent after his fourth year.

Under the new rules that regulate the hiring of Cuban ballplayers, upon receiving permanent residency — known as FM2 in Mexico — Puig will not need to be unblocked by the Office of Foreign Assets Control, the agency of the U.S. Department of the Treasury that enforces the sanctions of the United States’ embargo against Cuba.

Puig batted .330 with 17 home runs, 47 RBIs and 78 runs scored in 327 at-bats with the Cienfuegos Elefantes in the 2010-11 Cuban National Series. He averaged .370 in 46 at-bats in the playoffs.

Puig, once considered the fastest player in Cuban baseball, was left off the Cienfuegos team for the 2011-12 season after having been caught on several occasions trying to escape the country. He finally succeeded in defecting last month and established residency in Mexico.

Soler to Sign with the Chicago Cubs…

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Jorge Soler is ready to play professional ball in the United States…

The 20-year-old Cuban baseball star, who defected from his native country last year, has reached a verbal agreement with the Chicago Cubs on a nine-year contract worth $30 million dollars, according to USA Today.

Jorge Soler

The 6-foot 3, 225-pound power hitter, who was declared a free agent last week, is expected to be a right fielder with five-tool potential.

The Cubs outbid several large-market teams, including the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Cubs, who never bid on free agents like first basemen Albert Pujols last winter, believe Soler will be ready for the big leagues in two or three years.

Soler had previously played for the Cuba’s national baseball team in the 2010 World Junior Baseball Championship, where he had a .304 batting average, .500 on-base percentage, and .522 slugging percentage. His nine walks were the second most in the tournament, where Cuba won the bronze. He also briefly played in the Cuban National Series.

The bid for Soler comes months after Cuban defector Yoenis Cespedes signed with the Oakland Athletics. The 26-year-old Cuban centerfielder agreed to a four-year, $36 million deal in February.