The New York Mets did their part in a busy day of international signings across baseball.
It was the opening of the international signing period, and with most contracts agreed to in advance, the Mets brought on a full slate.
Much of the attention is rightfully focused on Wandy Asigen, but the Mets also shelled out another $1.3725 million for an outfielder who has been compared to Twins legend Kirby Puckett.
It's Cleiner Ramirez, who is expected to fill out his 5-foot-9 frame in a sturdy way. Currently, he's 17 years old, so he's got time.
"Ramirez is one of those players helping the nation’s stock as he displays a balanced skill set with tons of upside, a la fellow countryman Luisangel Acuña," writes MLB.com's scouting report. "One evaluator compared Ramirez’s build by the time he’s done filling out to something mirroring Kirby Puckett."
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Ramirez is a bit more pure hitter than power hitter at this point, but he's got some of both traits.
"At just 5-foot-9, Ramirez uses his shorter stature to his advantage in the box," MLB.com writes. "His right-handed swing has tons of bat speed as he displays a repeatable bat path and ability to square up a variety of pitches. During his time in the Caracas Prospect League, he hit.419 (13-for-31) and racked up 21 total bases in 10 games. His power is still blossoming, but he has shown an advanced eye at the dish with 14 walks to just eight strikeouts in that same sample size."
Ramirez has played a lot of infield growing up, so there's always a chance he stays somewhere on the dirt.
But regardless of where he plays, if he is anything at all like Puckett, this will be a brilliant move by the Mets.
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