What Detroit Tigers like about new international prospect Nestor Miranda
His parents wanted him to graduate high school.
Nestor Miranda, a right-handed hitting third baseman from the Dominican Republic who turns 18 in late February, became eligible to sign a professional contract during last year's international signing period, but because of his commitment to his education, he didn't sign with the Detroit Tigers until the 2024 signing period began Monday.
The Tigers, led by area scout Rodolfo Penalo, had been scouting him since 2019.
"There was a lot of competition for him," said Tom Moore, the Tigers' director of international operations. "Kudos to our scouting staff down there for really building that relationship. I think that's part of the recruiting process in making the player feel comfortable with the organization and that pathway for development."
Moore credited Penalo and scouting supervisor Oliver Arias for helping the Tigers sign Miranda. The two sides agreed on a $1.5 million signing bonus, just 23.1% of the Tigers' $6.52 million bonus pool for the entire international class. He ranked as the No. 25 prospect on Baseball America's top 100 list and the No. 45 prospect on MLB Pipeline's top 50 list.
Miranda, at 6 feet 3, 225 pounds, creates damage with his swing.
His potential as a pure hitter will be determined by his ability to maintain plate discipline throughout the professional ranks. If he doesn't do that, he might struggle to advance in the minor leagues despite above-average power.
"Excited to have Nestor with the Tigers," Moore said. "I'm certainly very excited about his tools, his ability to impact the ball, his bat speed and power potential. He's a kid that's really dedicated towards his craft. He works really hard, great makeup."
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Miranda is slated to start his professional career at the lowest rung of the Tigers' farm system at the Dominican Republic academy in San Pedro de Macorís. (The Tigers are building a new academy outside of the capital city Santo Domingo, but it's unclear when the project will be completed.)
Moore, who has worked for the Tigers since 2005, remembers seeing Miranda for the first time in 2019. The Tigers had a workout for fellow prospect Reylin Perez, who signed in the 2022 class, and spotted Miranda at that same workout.
He was playing shortstop at the workout, but based on the projection of his body, the Tigers assumed he would need to move to third base. "He does have athleticism for being a kid as physical as he is," Moore said. Some evaluators, however, think Miranda could transition to first base in the future if he hits for enough power.
Also playing a role in the signing was director of Latin American operations Miguel Garcia. He has worked for the Tigers since 2005 and helped the Florida Marlins sign Miguel Cabrera in 1999.
"First time I saw him was around 2020," Garcia said. "He was a shortstop, but we all knew that he wasn't going to stay in that position because of his body, his frame. But the kid has done a really good job of developing his body."
Garcia credited Penalo, the area scout, for his work in signing Miranda to the 2024 class.
"We followed him for a long time," Garcia said, "and we kept track of every at-bat that he had. That's the main reason why we came up with him as our No. 1 choice."
How Tigers evaluated Jose Pinto, Armando Lao, Jack Bushell
The Tigers signed 17 players to the 2024 class within the first three days of the international signing period: Miranda, Venezuelan shortstop Luis Aguilera, Venezuelan left-hander Gregory Amarante, Nicaraguan right-hander Branell Anderson, Dominican infielder Guillermo Batista, Australian righty Jack Bushell, Dominican shortstop Jose Dickson, Venezuelan catcher Jelker Gudino, Dominican infielder Kendrick Hernandez, Venezuelan catcher Armando Lao, Venezuelan catcher Steven Madero, Dominican outfielder Jonathan Moya, Venezuelan outfielder Jesus Pinto, Dominican infielder Ronald Ramirez, Dominican righty Albert Ramos, Venezuelan righty Franyerson Reyes and Dominican catcher Angel Rodriguez.
After Miranda, Pinto received the second-highest signing bonus — $900,000 — among the players who signed with the Tigers. The 16-year-old, known for his athleticism as a center fielder, was ranked No. 41 on Baseball America's top-100 list.
Garcia, the director of Latin American operations, shared the Tigers' scouting process that led to signing Pinto out of Venezuela for nearly $1 million.
"He is a kid that we have been following for a long time," Garcia said. "The first time I saw him was outside of Venezuela in Cartagena, Colombia. He was working out for Dream Team Academy. The kid has every tool. He always projected to an interesting set of tools that you can develop and dream on. He has been on the radar for quite a few teams, and we did a good job to come up with his contract."
Three of the four catchers in the class grew up in Venezuela: Lao, Gudino and Madero. Garcia discussed the scouting process that led to signing Lao, a 16-year-old catcher, for $300,000.
"The thing that we like the most is his maturity," Garcia said. "The makeup is outstanding. This kid can catch and throw, but he can also run really good. For his position, he is an above-average runner. He is capable of hitting the ball to the opposite field with authority. He comes from a really good academy (Izturis Baseball Academy), Maicer and César Izturis are both former big leaguers. This is a player that has been around people who know the game and have a lot of experience. He's got a really good idea of game calling. That's what we really liked about him."
Moore talked about Bushell, the 18-year-old righty from Australia.
"We have an advantage, having our Pacific Rim coordinator Kevin Hooker in Australia," Moore said. "He is really well established with a great contact base. He is a scout that identifies talent early, stays on the player and really does a great job building history. A player like Jack, we're really excited to have him. His dad played in the ABL (Australian Baseball League). His mom was a softball player on the Olympic team that won a bronze medal in 2000. There's some athleticism in the family."
Bushell, who used to play in the middle infield, didn't become a full-time pitcher until the end of the 2022 calendar year. He pitches for the Adelaide Giants in the ABL.
"Jack was a two-way player, and we really liked him as an athlete," Moore said. "We gravitated toward the fact that when he started pitching he got a skill set that we thought would really do well when he gets into professional baseball. We saw him especially over the 18-and-under world championship that he competed in, and then he represented Australia (at the Asia Professional Baseball Championship) — I think he was the youngest player in the tournament — in Japan. I think that was a really good experience for him, pitching in a big-league stadium (Tokyo Dome). We're excited to have him."
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: What Detroit Tigers like about new prospect Nestor Miranda
