The Next D.R. Phenom: Micheal Inoa

For the next month, the Dominican Republic will draw hundreds of scouts, executives, and coaches all hoping to find the next Pedro Martinez or David Ortiz. This year, they might have that opportunity. Micheal Inoa, a sixteen year old right hander, is 6-foot-7 with sound mechanics. His fastball is consistently in the 91-93 mph range, but lacks a solid number two pitch. He can throw a curveball and splitter, but both are inconsistent. However, he shows a lot of upside. "Everything’s really easy and the fastball has good life," said one international scouting director. "For as big as he is, you’d expect him not to be able to repeat as well as he does. But he stays within himself and once he grows more into that frame, you’ll see that velocity start to climb . . . and that’s a scary thing."

It looks like every team will be in on this guy, so it hard to see where he will go. But he will definitely be signed soon after the July 2nd international signing day.

Here are a couple other guys that will be signed by the signing day:

Carlos Perez: 6-foot-2 right hander has fastball that has reached 90, but usually sits between 87-89. He needs to develop a second pitch to really be taken seriously.

Johenser Cevallos: He is a big right hander, with a lot of upside, but doesn't have much control over his secondary pitches.

Yorman Rodriguez: He is the best outfielder coming out of Venezuela and will likely receive a big a bonus. He combines power and speed and could rise fast through a minor league system.

Ezdra Abreu: He is an infielder who projects to swing a big bat.