Los Angeles Dodgers sign Cuban Infielder Fernandez

The Los Angeles Dodgers just signed Jose Miguel Fernandez from Cuba. What can be expected from him, and what took so long for him to get signed?

For a very reasonable sum of $200,000, the Los Angeles Dodgers signed former Cuban second baseman Jose Miguel Fernandez. He was once considered the best pure hitter in Cuba, and he was cleared to sign in December of 2015, so why did this take so long to happen, and did the Dodgers end up getting a deal here?

The player

Those who are fans of the World Baseball Classic are familiar with Fernandez’s unique bat-to-ball ability as he displayed as part of Cuba’s team.

Fernandez will turn 29 in the first month of the 2017 season, so he’s not a “young” prospect by any means, but, to quote Liam Neeson, he has a very particular set of skills that could make him a very profitable pick up for the Dodgers.

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Fernandez played over 600 games in the Cuban Serie Nacional, yet he struck out a total of 113 times in over 2500 plate appearances. He has a unique ability to make contact with the ball. While most guys with his skill also don’t walk much, he does have a walk rate of over 10%.

Some have discussed his unique swing and approach at the plate and compared it to that of Ichiro Suzuki, though Fernandez sacrifices nearly all power in his swing as part of his high-contact approach, leading to his primary value being in his batting average, which is why his career ISO in Cuba is only .104.

Fernandez defensively has played second base as it’s a perfect fit for his 5’11, 190-pound frame. He has played third base, but his arm is better suited for second, where he doesn’t have great range, but he does have very consistent hands at the position.

From the first time Fernandez attempted to leave Cuba in October of 2014, the comparison for Fernandez has been to Howie Kendrick, a capable, albeit not flashy defender at second with a good contact ability.

The delay

Fernandez first applied for MLB in October of 2014, as his friend Yasmany Tomas was in the process of signing with the Arizona Diamondbacks, and many thought Fernandez would demand a significant contract the moment he was cleared.

The problem? Fernandez was caught by the Cuban government trying to leave. That led to a season-long suspension that held him in Cuba until mid-2015. He was officially cleared in December of 2015. However, by then it had been over a year since he had played any baseball as he had not been allowed to do much of anything while in restriction.

Fernandez took this delay in time to get himself physically ready for showcases that he’s had late in the fall, hoping for a major league deal, but he found the market very thin for him, likely due to his time off and age.

As we see with young outfielder Luis Robert, who is making news now attempting to get signed before the new CBA kicks into play, the Cuban rules have changed significantly since Fernandez was cleared due to changed trade sanctions with Cuba. Fernandez is likely the last “victim” of these policies.

Ben Badler of Baseball America posted in his article on the signing (and few cover Cuba better), the Dodgers may have benefited significantly from circumstances of this deal to get a player who could end up being a contributor, even as a second division regular, for them, though he’ll likely need some time in the minors to get back into the swing of live pitching this season.

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Here’s the video I could find on Fernandez to take a look at his ability: