It might be trite to remind people of the fact that the Dominican Republic is the virtual hub of baseball activities in Latin America, not just the Caribbean. As such, there is an important number of young players from other areas that come here to polish their skills, show off in front of scouts and play baseball at a higher level than is perhaps available from where they come from. Major League Baseball and the Migration Agency (DGM) are working to create better mechanisms for the around 5,000 youngsters that come to the Dominican Republic to train for a future in organized baseball.
The director of the DGM, Enrique Garcia told reporters that new migration controls at Dominican airports are being instated to ensure that the young baseball prospects are registered with one of the many baseball academies in the country. In the Dominican Republic, there are 60 baseball academies that train young players in the finer aspects of the game, provide a general education, and a proper diet.
All the teams in the Major leagues have academies here, as well as several teams from Japan. MLB spends tens of millions of dollars each year in July signing international prospects, often times for millions of dollars each.
It is the MLB form of gambling. If they nab a David Ortiz or Manny Ramirez or even a Pedro Martinez early on, then it is all worth it. It is a true exercise in free market economics. A star player such as recently deceased Damaso García, who played for more than a decade for the New York Yankees and the Toronto Blue Jays was recruited for US$7,000. A bust, such as 6’7” pitcher Michael Inoa who signed for over US$4 million, may never play a season in the big leagues.
For the baseball schools, a major signing is highly rewarding, since the academy director often gets 30% of the signing bonus, and often times a smaller percentage of future Major League wages.
Read more in Spanish:
Diario Libre
25 April 2021