A's sign pair of international free agents

The Athletics have signed 17-year old third baseman Miguel Mercedes and 17-year old infielder Jean Carlo Rodriguez, reports Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.

Merecedes is from the Dominican Republic, and Rodriguez is from Panama. Both are obviously extremely far away from the Majors and won't be making an impact any time.

The Athletics currently need to restock their farm system, as graduations and trades have weakened it to the point where they will need it to take a step forward. Players like these won't help that immediately, but if they spend enough time in Oakland's player development system they could become useful pieces for the team down the line.

Oakland notably set a record for the highest bonus given to an international free agent when they signed pitcher Michael Ynoa in 2008, but the team has stayed away from high-profile IFA signings since then. It should be interesting to see how Oakland and other teams adapt to the new bonus rules in the CBA.