MLB Playoffs: Which remaining AL team has the most home grown players?
By Paul Ashley
The final four teams remaining in the MLB Playoffs from the American League have all taken unique routes to construct their current rosters. We have ranked each team from least to most in terms of which team has the most home-grown talent.
Although key free agents signings and trades are necessary for teams to advance to the MLB playoffs, the remainder of the rosters need to be filled out with home-grown players. For this list, players originally acquired through the MLB draft or through international signings will be considered home-grown players.
International signings can consist of high dollar bonuses, but so can high round picks in the MLB draft. Even though some international signings may have the opportunity to play in professional leagues before signing a major or minor league contract, it is still unknown how they will perform at the MLB level. Due to this, players selected in the MLB draft and players signed internationally both require a very talented scouting department to find future impact players for their respective organization.
As an example, the famous core four that provided five World Series Championships for the New York Yankees are widely considered home-grown players. However, they consisted of three drafted players and one international signing. Jorge Posada was drafted in the 24th round of the 1990 draft. Mariano Rivera was signed as an international free agent in 1990. Andy Pettitte was drafted in the 22nd round of the 1990 draft. Derek Jeter was drafted in the first round of the 1992 draft.
Despite the experience earned professionally in Japan by Shohei Ohtani, he should be considered a home-grown player for the Los Angeles Angels. The same goes for Jose Abreu, who compiled many years of experience in Cuba before joining the Chicago White Sox.
It is very impressive if a team is able to reach the MLB playoffs without relying on spending big in free agency or acquiring already known talent through trades. The following teams are ranked from worst to first of being able to reach at least an AL Division Series with the most home-grown talent.