The window for the Tampa Bay Rays to sign international free agents opened Saturday, and the team has responded by agreeing to terms with eight players on minor-league contracts.
According to Baseball America, Tampa Bay had $5,721,200 in international bonus pool money to use during this signing period. The team has not announced if how much, if any, pool money remains.
The players signed Saturday are:
Miguel Tamares, SS, Dominican Republic
Jose Lazaro Contreras, OF, Cuba
Jose Sanabria, OF, Venezuela
Rodrigo Romero, SS, Venezuela
Felix Cotes, SS, Dominican Republic
Angel Mateo, OF, Dominican Republic
Enderson Delgado, C, Venezuela
Jhonny Perez, C, Venezuela
Cuban OF Lázaro José Contreras (16) officially sign with the Tampa Bay Rays. Bonus deal: 1.1 M. pic.twitter.com/LJbmq4qFUu
— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) January 15, 2022
Rays signing Felix Cotes, shortstop from the Dominican Republic https://t.co/ZG8rEgV8vn pic.twitter.com/DejlRQVTYN
— Ben Badler (@BenBadler) January 15, 2022
Other free agents may yet to sign with the team, so stay tuned for further developments.
Steve Carney is the founder and publisher of St. Pete Nine. One of the people most associated with baseball coverage in Tampa Bay, he spent 13 seasons covering the Rays for flagship radio station WDAE, first as producer of Rays Radio broadcasts, then as beat reporter beginning in 2011. He likes new analytics and aged bourbon, and is the owner of one of the ugliest knuckleballs ever witnessed by baseball scouts.
