Melissa Segura of SI.com, is reporting that a top international prospect signed by the Yankees earlier this month is not in fact who he claimed to be.
Two weeks ago, the Yankees signed 16-year-old Dominican shortstop Damian Arredondo to a contract that entailed an $850,000 signing bonus.
Now Major League Baseball's Department of Investigations has determined that Arredondo is not the player's real name and that he is older than 16.
By rule, a player found to have used a fraudulent identity or to have misrepresented his age cannot sign with another club for one year.
The Yankees, however, will not lose any of the bonus paid out to Arredondo because these contracts are contingent on the outcome of the investigations.
The report indicates that MLB and Dominican authorities are working together to bring criminal charges against those who orchestrate these fraudulent charges. Often times these kids fall victim to greedy agents, and scouts, who stand to make huge profits off these young players.
This is just another example of that. It's unfortunate for these kids who probably don't know any better. They often seek baseball as an opportunity to escape the impoverish conditions in their home country, however, more times than not they become victims of the system.