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Dodgers Rumors: Yaisel Sierra’s Contract Expected To Be Finalized

Matthew Moreno
2 Min Read

The Los Angeles Dodgers wasted little time to exceed their allotted bonus pool money when the international signing period opened last July.

Their haul included Yadier Alvarez, a 19-year-old Cuban right-hander signed to a $16-million contract, and Dominican prospects such as outfielder Starling Heredia and shortstop Ronny Brito. Then in January, the Dodgers reportedly agreed to a six-year contract with Cuban righty Yaisel Sierra.

In exceeding their bonus pool money, the Dodgers are paying a 100 percent tax penalty on dollars spent during the current signing period, and won’t be able to sign any international free agents for bonuses over $300,000 in each next two international signing periods, beginning July 2016.

While Sierra reached an agreement with the Dodgers last month, the club has yet to make the deal official. That appears to be a matter of resolving paperwork, according to Jon Heyman:

Speaking at the Dodgers FanFest event on Jan. 30, president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said the club hoped to have Sierra in camp for Spring Training. “It’s a complicated process. It’s going to take time and there isn’t a ton of transparency as to how that works in terms of timing,” Friedman said.

“But, we’re hopeful we’ll have him in Spring Training when pitchers and catchers report.” Sierra left Cuba last April and was declared a free agent by Major League Baseball last December. In four seasons spent pitching in the Cuban League, he was 16-21 with a 4.23 ERA and 1.49 WHIP.

Sierra has experience as a starter, but exclusively pitched out of the bullpen during the 2014 season. With a mid-90s fastball, he conceivably could compete for a spot in the Dodgers bullpen this spring.

At this stage it appears the Dodgers’ initial focus is to develop Sierra as a starting pitcher.

Matthew Moreno is a journalist from Whittier, Calif., who is a credentialed reporter and is currently the Managing Editor of DodgerBlue.com and LakersNation.com. In addition to covering Los Angeles Dodgers and Los Angels Lakers, Matthew has a strong passion for keeping up to date with the sneakerhead culture. It began with Michael Jordan and Air Jordan shoes, and has carried over to Kobe Bryant's signature line with Nike. Matthew previously was the lead editor and digital strategist at Dodgers Nation, and the co-editor and lead writer at Reign of Troy, where he covered USC Trojans Football. Matthew graduated from California State Long Beach University with a major in journalism and minor in communications. Contact: matt@mediumlargela.com