MLB Finds Dominican Prospect With Now Revoked Padres Agreement Falsified Age: Source

An investigation by Major League Baseball has found that a prominent teenager in the Dominican Republic forged documents and is five years older than previously believed, resulting in the rescission of a verbal agreement with the San Diego Padres, a league source confirmed. The Athletics.

The prospect, who went by the name Cesar Altagracia and plays shortstop, had verbally agreed to sign with the Padres for approximately $4 million in January 2027, according to ESPN, which first reported news of the MLB investigation. The source said the league discovered that Altagracia is 19, not 14 as stated on his paperwork.

The Padres and MLB declined comment separately.

As the extent of the now annulled verbal agreement indicated, the teenager was seen as one of the top prospects in his international signing class. The teenager represented the Dominican Republic under a false identity at the 2022 U-12 Baseball World Cup and at the U-15 Pan American Championships last summer, ESPN reported.

MLB typically suspends players found to have falsified their age for one year before allowing them to apply for reinstatement.

The practice of signing amateur international players, especially in the baseball-mad Dominican Republic, has gained increasing attention in recent years. Corruption is widespread and in some cases teams are said to enter into verbal agreements with players as young as twelve. Eligible international players may not sign with Major League organizations until they reach the age of sixteen.

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(Photo: Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Associated Press)