
Photo from Armando Cruz (R) with Cristian Vaquero (L); February 2020, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic at Ágora Mall
Centerfielder Cristian Vaquero has established himself as one of the top international amateur prospects for the Class of 2021. Today, Baseball America broke the news that the 16 year old has been rumored and tied to a commitment to the Washington Nationals, but this cannot become official until the next international free agent signing period which is expected in July or it could be pushed back to January as we saw happened during the 2020 season.
“The Nationals paid the top bonus for a 16-year-old international prospect in the 2020-21 signing class, when they spent most of their bonus pool money on Dominican shortstop Armando Cruz. In the next signing period, it looks like they’re going to invest most of their pool space into one player again, this time with Vaquero the headliner,” Baseball America wrote.
Also, it appears Vaquero has committed to the Boras Agency for representation if you trust social media posts as he was previously tied to the Republik Sports agency. His updated social media posts seem to confirm both choices as he is seen wearing a Boras shirt in his most recent photo on Instagram, as well as several photos in Nats gear.
Ben Badler, Senior Writer for Baseball America, released his 2021-22 International Big Board today, which currently lists Vaquero as BA’s No. 1 prospect in terms of projected bonuses.
Our first international prospect board for the 2021-22 class is up today at Baseball America.
An overview of some of the top 2021 players with reports, teams and videos.https://t.co/JykXtBM35s
— Ben Badler (@BenBadler) March 2, 2021
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Originally from Havana, Cuba, Vaquero eventually made his way to the Dominican Republic in order further develop his baseball skills. Vaquero trains under the guidance of the Javier Rodriguez Academy outside of Santo Domingo Este. Continue reading