In Signing Moncada, the Red Sox Out-Yankee’d New York
Dozens of major league scouts descended on Guatemala in November to get a look at Yoan Moncada, the latest in a seemingly endless string of up-and-coming stars from Cuba. Afterwards, reports emerged that the usual suspects – the Yankees, Dodgers, Red Sox – were in the running for his services, as were wild cards like San Diego and Milwaukee.
Given the Red Sox organization’s place among the pre-eminent spenders in the league, the reports made sense. And yet, when news broke Feb. 23 that the Red Sox had landed Moncada with their their $31 million bid, it was a pleasant surprise.
That’s not to say Moncada isn’t an asset. To the contrary – per Baseball America, he instantly became the team’s top prospect and, at only 19, the No. 10 prospect in baseball. His bat profiles for MLB play as well as any in the minors, and he’s a likely cornerstone for the Red Sox for years to come. And he’s exactly the sort of player the Yankees have broken the bank for time and time again – hence, the surprise.
Over the years, the Yankees have developed a reputation as the sport’s “evil empire’’ – a moniker coined in 2002 by none other than Larry Lucchino after his Red Sox lost out to New York for the services of Jose Contreras, then coveted by major league clubs. They were one of the international market’s biggest players then, and have remained such in the decade-plus since.
Not only did a Moncada signing fit the team’s M.O., it also fit their roster needs. In 2013, Yankees second-baseman Robinson Cano finished at 6 WAR, behind only the Cardinals’ Matt Carpenter at the position. A year later, with Cano in Seattle, the Yankees second-base platoon managed a whopping -0.1. Minor leaguer Robert Refsnyder is the seventh-best prospect at the position, but he boasts both a strong bat and questionable defense.
Meanwhile, at least a year out of his first crack at the majors, Moncada is a man seemingly without a place in Fenway Park. Incumbent second-baseman Dustin Pedroia isn’t going anywhere until 2021 barring a serious decline, his 4.4 WAR good for seventh at the position in 2014 despite his waning bat. Moncada has experience at shortstop but it appears the Red Sox want Xander Bogaerts there, and he could get a corner spot if and when David Ortiz vacates the DH spot or Mike Napoli moves on. Regardless, his path to everyday play is murky in March 2015.
The Yankees need Moncada as much as the Red Sox don’t… so why isn’t he in pinstripes? Because after dropping nearly $500 million on free agents last year, the Bronx team has been uncharacteristically quiet in the lead-up to 2015. Of course, because he signed minor league contract, none of Moncada’s salary counts against the luxury cap, suggesting this is less luxury tax savvy than the Yankees simply being outbid.
The so-called “purchase’’ of championships is a strategy often decried by baseball purists, but for Red Sox fans, it should be relished.
Per MLB rules, each team is alotted a certain amount of money called an international bonus pool to spend on international free agents, set in inverse owner of winning percentage. The Red Sox were alotted $1,881,700 for 2014-15, and are subject to significant penalties for exceeding that threshold: they must pay the league a tax equal to Moncada’s $31.5 million signing bonus, and are outright forbidden from giving any international player more than $300,000 in the next two international signing periods, which span July 2015 to July 2017.
Because they already exceeded the threshold with Rusney Castillo last summer, the Red Sox lost nothing in signing Moncada – and gained a prospect with a top comparable of Cano without burning a draft pick.
The Red Sox, by virtue of savvy personnel moves and a life-saving bailout courtesy of Los Angeles, had money to burn this offseason after years below the luxury cap threshold. The Yankees, with a combined $73 million allocated to C.C. Sabathia, Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira this year alone, can now little afford to spend.
Thirteen years after he bestowed the evil empire moniker on the Yankees, Larry Lucchino’s own team may be a better fit. And looking at that projected lineup, it feels good.
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