photo: Miguel Hernandez (Ben Badler photo)
Ten position players and two pitchers representing five different countries are among the St. Louis Cardinals’ first-day 2025 international signees.
St. Louis Cardinals release
The St. Louis Cardinals announced today (Wednesday, January 15) the signing of 12 free-agent players representing the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Panama, Mexico and Nicaragua on the first day of Major League Baseball’s international signing period for 2025. Five infielders, four outfielders, two pitchers, and one catcher were among the signees who will all be assigned to the Dominican Summer League.
All of the players are being signed for the 2025 minor league season and are subject to MLB approval. A complete listing of the Cardinals international player signings is below:
| Name | Pos. | B/T | HT | WT | DOB | Age | Hometown |
| Michael Cordero | 3B | R/R | 5’11” | 185 | 8/24/2008 | 16 | Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic |
| Sebastian Dos Santos | SS | S/R | 6’0” | 173 | 1/29/2008 | 16 | Barquisimeto, Venezuela |
| Juan Carlos Garcia | RHP | R/R | 6’0” | 197 | 5/30/2008 | 16 | Teran, Nuevo Leon, Mexico |
| Daniel Gomez | RHP | R/R | 6’2” | 183 | 1/6/2008 | 17 | La Guaira, Venezuela |
| Miguel Hernández | SS | R/R | 6’0” | 165 | 6/2/2008 | 16 | Pariaguan, Venezuela |
| Kenly Hunter | CF | R/R | 5’10″ | 158 | 05/09/08 | 16 | Corn Island, Nicaragua |
| Yostin Peña | OF | R/R | 6’5″ | 210 | 10/19/07 | 17 | Santo Domingo Este, Dominican Republic |
| Jesus Perez | INF | R/R | 5’10” | 162 | 10/04/07 | 17 | Punto Fijo, Venezuela |
| Yeferson Portolatin | SS | S/R | 5’10” | 159 | 11/29/2007 | 17 | La Romana, Dominican Republic |
| Juan Rujano | C | R/R | 6’3″ | 200 | 12/14/07 | 17 | Santiago, Veraguas, Panama |
| Royelny Strop | CF | L/L | 6’0″ | 176 | 06/04/08 | 16 | Palenque, Dominican Republic |
| Yordy Valdez | CF | R/R | 5’11″ | 155 | 08/23/08 | 16 | Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic |
Brian Walton’s take
Dominican outfielder Royelny Strop, son of former Cubs closer Pedro Strop, had long been expected to sign with the Cardinals. The jewel of this recruiting class from St. Louis is receiving $1.4 million to sign, per journalist Francys Romero. Strop is the no. 28 prospect of the international class according to MLB Pipeline and no. 31 according to Baseball America.
Catcher Juan Rujano will receive a signing bonus of $750,000. Per BA’s Ben Badler, this is expected to be the highest bonus in this class for a player from Panama. Rujano was BA’s no. 67 prospect in the class.
Dominican shortstop Kenly Hunter received a $700,000 bonus plus a $50,000 scholarship. Romero, who reported the information, add that. Hunter’s bonus is the highest given to a Nicaragua-born player since 2013.
Receiving $300,000 was Dominican outfielder Yostin Peña, per journalist Antonio Puesán.
The Cardinals signed another son of a former big-league reliever, third baseman Michael Cordero, whose father is Francisco Cordero. According to Puesán, Cordero’s bonus is $100,000.
Three other Cardinals signees are ranked in BA’s Top 100 international prospects. Outfielder Kenly Hunter from Nicaragua is no. 68, shortstop Miguel Hernandez from Venezuela is no. 88 and shortstop Yeferson Portalatin from the Dominican Republic is no. 96.
What is next
Look for my upcoming interview with Cardinals Assistant General Manager Moises Rodriguez, who has responsibility for the international program. Rodriguez will provide insight on key members of this signing class. This will be for paid members of The Cardinal Nation, so join today and don’t miss out!
For transaction and roster information
To see all players in the system by level and position plus every transaction all year ‘round, check out the always free Roster Matrix here at The Cardinal Nation, refreshed today.
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