Tampa Bay Rays 2025 International Signings Review

Top Of The Class

The upside is exciting for 17-year-old Dominican outfielder Maykel Coret, who signed with the Rays for $1.6 million. He’s 6-foot-4, 187 pounds, a long, athletic, expandable frame with a lot of space left to add good weight. Coret will have some of the better raw power in the DSL this year, with the high-end bat speed and strength projection to develop plus to plus-plus raw power once he’s physically mature. He’s a plus runner too, making him a power/speed threat if everything clicks.

Coret’s pure hitting ability carries more risk, though, as a long-limbed hitter whose swing can get big. Coret can crush fastballs, but he’s still learning to recognize breaking stuff and control the strike zone, so he will have to make adjustments to cut down on his swing-and-miss and be on time more consistently. If he’s able to make enough contact, his potential to stay in center field makes his profile even more intriguing. While a lot of players his size end up in a corner once they add mass, Coret’s athleticism, speed and defensive instincts give him a good chance to continue in center field at higher levels. He covers a lot of ground to both gaps and has a plus arm with good accuracy. 

Venezuelan shortstop Eliomar Garces signed with the Rays for $1.6 million. He was a 5-foot-7 shortstop early in the process when teams were scouting him but stood out for his defense and contact skills from both sides of the plate. He’s still on the smaller side but he has grown to 5-foot-9, 165 pounds at 17 while continuing to play good defense with little swing-and-miss.

He’s around an average runner with quick-twitch actions at shortstop, where he’s light on his feet and a fluid mover with soft hands, strong instincts and an above-average arm. Garces has a compact swing and a good sense of the strike zone to put balls in play at a high clip, but he’s mostly a spray hitter right now who will need to get stronger to grow into more extra-base juice. 

The Rays signed Raymer Medina, a 17-year-old shortstop from the Dominican Republic, for $1.1 million. At 5-foot-11, 177 pounds, Medina has the actions for shortstop, especially with his soft, quick hands. He has agile footwork, good body control and a swift exchange to a solid-average arm. A switch-hitter, Medina has an aggressive approach that he will have to reign in against more advanced pitching. It’s mostly gap power with enough strength to pull one over the fence. His swing itself is fluid and isn’t long, but he’s prone to chase and sell out to get to power at times, so refining his approach will be an important step for his development. 

A third shortstop the Rays gave a seven-figure bonus to this year was Warel Solano, a 17-year-old from the Dominican Republic who got $1.05 million. He’s a wiry 6-foot-2, 165 pounds with a high waist, room to fill out and enhance an already promising offensive skill set. A righthanded hitter, Solano has a good sense of the strike zone for his age and the bat speed to drive the ball with power that could grow into an above-average tool.

His swing has some unorthodox moves, and while he can get too pull-focused at times, he can drives the ball with impact when he stays balanced and through the middle of the field. As an amateur, Solano’s fielding was behind his offense, but he has worked diligently to improve his defense, especially his first-step quickness. There’s still a good chance he moves off shortstop, but he has the hands and footwork to stay in the infield, with the arm strength that would fit at third or second base.

Names To Know

Emmanuel Cedeño, SS, Dominican Republic: Cedeño is a high-energy shortstop with a good mix of skills on both sides of the ball in a smaller 5-foot-9, 160-pound frame. He fields his position well with a quick first step, soft hands and fluid actions. He’s a 17-year-old switch-hitter who takes advantage of his smaller strike zone with good plate discipline and bat-to-ball skills, albeit without much power yet, so getting stronger to do more damage will be important for his development. Cedeño signed with the Rays for $500,000. 

Brainerh Palacios, C, Venezuela: The Rays signed Palacios for $350,000. He turned 17 a few days before the start of the Dominican Summer League opener, so he’s one of the younger players in the 2025 class and has a well-rounded tool set for a catcher. He’s 6 feet, 160 pounds with good bat-to-ball skills from the right side of the plate. It’s not huge present power, but he can drive the ball to both alleys with the projection in his frame to potentially grow into 15-plus home run pop. Palacio is athletic and runs well especially for a catcher, with a tick above-average speed underway, though he will likely slow down as he puts on weight if he stays behind the plate. He projects to stick at catcher, where he has solid catch-and-throw skills for his age. 

Emile Torres, OF, Dominican Republic: Torres, 17, has similarities to Coret as an athletic, 6-foot-3, 175-pound center fielder with promising tools. Torres didn’t get as big of a bonus—he signed for $300,000—but he’s just as good defensively in center field with plus speed, good range and instincts to go with an average arm. Torres is a long-armed righthanded hitter with the bat speed to drive the ball with big power for his age that should develop plus raw power once he fills out. He’s not a free-swinger, but he’s still learning to pick up spin and his swing can get big and pull-heavy, so it’s probably a power-over-hit offensive game that will come with some swing-and-miss. 

Kadil Rubio, OF, Cuba: Rubio is 6-foot-2, 165 pounds, a slender build that lacks strength, so he’s a deeper projection type but could see everything tick up once he layers on more muscle. He’s a 17-year-old with easy actions in center field and a tick above-average speed, which could be good enough to keep him in center field or potentially be an above-average defender in a corner. He has solid bat-to-ball skills from the right side of the plate with occasional deep alleys shots and a chance for his offensive game to take a step forward with strength gains. 

Ivan Torres, C, Venezuela: The Rays signed Torres, 17, for $150,000. He has a stocky build (5-foot-11, 220 pounds) as an offensive-oriented catcher with a good mix of contact skills and strength in his swing to drive the ball out of the park to his pull side. Torres has a tick above-average arm and should be able to stay behind the plate if his receiving continues to progress. 

Sleeper Watch

Among the pitching the Rays signed this year, one notable name is 17-year-old righthander Anderson Alvarez, who signed for $100,000. He’s a Venezuelan righthander and the nephew of former major league righthander Henderson Alvarez, who came up with the Blue Jays before spending a few years with the Marlins. Anderson is 6 feet, 162 pounds, not a tall frame but with room to add to a fastball that has ticked up from touching 89 mph when teams were scouting him as an amateur to now hitting 91. Alvarez has starter traits with easy arm action, a good delivery and a three-pitch mix that includes a curveball with tight rotation and feel for a changeup.