A's Reported Favorites to Sign Top International Prospect with Huge Comps
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While there is no guarantee that any new additions by the A's will be coming forth in the coming days, there is a guarantee that they'll be adding a slew of international talent beginning on January 15 when the signing period opens for 2026. The question is just who those new signees will end up being.
According to Francys Romero, "the Athletics are the favorites to sign SS Johenssy Colome for around $2 million when a new international signing period opens on January 15." He also quotes a scout as saying that Colome is the "best in the class."
The Athletics are the favorites to sign SS Johenssy Colome for around $2 million when a new international signing period opens on January 15, according to sources.
— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) January 3, 2026
Colome comes from a family with MLB pedigree.
“He is one of the best in this class,” a scout said. pic.twitter.com/EJzMXhf2f3
MLB.com has Colome ranked as their No. 5 international prospect, which would likely put him in the top-5 prospects for the A's, and potentially even a top-100 prospect in all of baseball when the rankings are updated later in the year. The one caveat here could be that evaluators would want to wait to see him a little bit before thrusting him that high onto either list.
From Pipeline's assessment of Colome: "It’s not often that teenage prospects launch home runs. But Colome has a tendency to get to that jumpy pop with frequency, consistently leveraging his swing well – so well in fact, that one evaluator mentioned the most recent occasion on which he saw an international prospect continually get to their launch point in such a manner was Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
"Colome is a right-handed hitter with explosive hands and a solid contact rate, although he has been known to be a tad aggressive in the box as a means of getting to said power. "
The shortstop prospect just turned 17 in October, so he has some time before he's MLB ready, but any time someone gets compared to someone of the caliber of a Vladimir Guerrero Jr., your ears perk up a bit. The interesting piece of this will be if Colome will be able to stick at shortstop, or if he will have to move positions like Guerrero, who went from third to first.
Pipeline also credits his athleticism at 6-foot-2, making him an agile athlete that shows lateral quickness.
"The fluidity of his movements and strong arm led to a Manny Machado comparison being hung on him defensively. Much like the seven-time All-Star, Colome may move off short as his frame fills out, but he’s a tremendously dedicated worker and has the feet, soft hands and instincts to stick at the premium position."
Those are two pretty intriguing comps to be hurled at Colome before he has even played pro ball.
Colome is the son of Jesús Colomé, who spent ten years in the big leagues pitching for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays (01-06), Washington Nationals (07-09), Milwaukee Brewers (09), and the Seattle Mariners (2010). He finished with a 4.69 ERA and a 93 ERA+ (100 is league average) in those ten seasons in The Show.
It's also worth noting that even though the A's are reportedly the favorites to sign Colome, that doesn't mean that it's a done deal. We'll have to wait until January 15 to know for certain.
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Jason has been covering the A’s at various sites for over a decade, and was the original host of the Locked on A’s podcast. He also covers the Stanford Cardinal as they attempt to rebuild numerous programs to prominence.
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