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Dodgers Suspend Erisbel Arruabarrena Again

By Gavin Lee

Apr 17, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; A general view as Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Kenta Maeda (18) bats off of a pitch by San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija (29) during the third inning at Dodger Stadium. The Los Angeles Dodgers won 3-1. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 17, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; A general view as Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Kenta Maeda (18) bats off of a pitch by San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija (29) during the third inning at Dodger Stadium. The Los Angeles Dodgers won 3-1. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports /
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For the second consecutive year, the Dodgers have suspended Erisbel Arruebarrena, this time for the rest of the year.

According to Barry Lewis of Tulsa World (link), the Dodgers have suspended Erisbel Arruebarrena for the remainder of the season. The exact cause of the suspension is not known, but Eric Stephen of SB Nation reports that Gabe Kapler (Dodgers Director of Player Personnel) told him it’s “for repeated failure to comply with the terms of his contract” (link). This is not the first time the Dodgers have disciplined Arruebarrena, as they dealt the same suspension a year ago, eventually reducing it to just 30 days.

Arruebarrena was signed out of Cuba in 2014 on a 5 year, $25 million dollar deal, drawing comparisons to the Tigers’ Jose Iglesias at shortstop.  He actually made his debut for the Dodgers just three months later on May 23rd of that season. After bouncing up and down that year, Arruebarrena spent last season in the minors (when he wasn’t suspended) hitting extremely poorly in his time there, all below AAA.

For the Dodgers, he represents a rare miss on what has been a very fruitful market. Los Angeles has signed Yasiel Puig, Hector Olivera, and Alex Guerrero out of the island nation in recent years. Though he may somehow turn it around, $25 million is a big miss even for a team with extremely deep pockets like the Dodgers. Now that US relations are on the (relative) upswing with Cuba, maybe teams will have a better idea of the players they are signing as they come out of the country.

Related Story: 12 Landing Spots for Cuban Prospect Lazarito

Players from their Serie Nacional have had tremendous success, and devastating failure over the years and have gained the reputation of somewhat of a lottery ticket process.  Cuban sensation Lazaro “Lazarito” Armenteros is the next player to command big money from the MLB, with the Dodgers already linked.  Though scouts seemed impressed with what they’ve seen so far, he’s still somewhat of an unknown compared with domestic players.

Next: Joc Pederson Off To Another Great Start

With an International Draft seemingly inevitable, the gamble may be lessened, but who knows how long it will take before Cuban players are as well-scouted as those born in the North American mainland.

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