Pirates prepared to sign two top names on international market as deadline approaches

When Major League Baseball's international signing period opens Jan. 15, it will be the Pittsburgh Pirates' time to shine.

Unlike the domestic free agent market, the international market offers a level playing field, with teams limited to making contract offers from their international bonus pool money. It's one of the few ways during the offseason that a cost-conscious, small market team like the Pirates can gain an edge over their competition.

This year's international class is unique, with plenty of eyes trained on Japanese pitching phenom Roki Sasaki, the darling of this year's group. While the Pirates are not expected to be one of the teams vying to land Sasaki, they are already benefiting from the domino effect the 23-year-old has had on the rest of the market.

With the Los Angeles Dodgers clearing as much international bonus pool space as possible and seemingly going all-in on their offer to Sasaki, international prospects who had pre-arranged deals with the club were no longer guaranteed that those deals would be honored. One such prospect, Dominican shortstop Darell Morel, has already gone back to market and agreed to a new deal with the Pirates with a signing bonus projected to be close to $1.8 million (roughly twice the amount the Dodgers were going to offer him).

Pirates projected to sign pair of top-100 prospects on international market as deadline approaches

Baseball America ranks Morell as the No. 20 international prospect in this year's class, making him the second prospect in BA's top-100 expected to sign with the Pirates. He joins fellow Dominican shortstop Johan De Los Santos – brother of Yordany, who signed with the Pirates for $1.2 million in 2022 – as the big names headlining Pittsburgh's 2025 international signings.

De Los Santos, who also ranks as the No. 23 prospect in this year's international class according to MLB Pipeline, is projected to sign for a bonus amount that could double his brother's from three years ago. Unlike Morel, he doesn't project as much of a power hitter, but he is a plus runner with a demonstrated ability to get on base.

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