Pirates Miss Out On Top 2027 International Signing
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates have had a busy International Signing Period this year, but one of their incoming talents for the future is no longer joining on.
Wilber Sánchez reported that the Pirates' agreement with Venezuelan catcher Sebastián Acuña for $1.5 million in the 2027 International Signing Period has fallen through.
Many scouts consider Acuña as the top catching prospect in the next class, representing a big miss for the Pirates.
The Pirates still have a chance to build a great International Signing Period in 2027, so they'll look elsewhere for those top talents.
What Does This Mean for the Pirates?
Scouts do value Acuña highly, as he possesses great athleticism and talents at such a young age.
Sánchez reported that Acuña runs the 60-yard dash in 6.4 seconds, has a pop time of 1.78 seconds, which measures the time a catcher catches the pitch to when it ends up in the fielder's receiving point, plus an exit velocity of 105 mph off the bat.
He also said that scouts compare Acuña to the power of New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge, the speed of Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz and the defense of nine-time Gold Glove Award winner in catcher Yadier Molina.
Those projections are incredible for someone like Acuña, but also a bit unrealistic for a prospect that young.
John Dreker, who reports on the Pirates' farm system, said that Acuña's trainer broke off a few deals with other teams recently, so it's likely he'll keep moving around to each team until he gets that high payday.
The Pirates have also made some great late signings in the International Signing Period that Dreker mentioned like power-hitter Tony Blanco Jr. in the 2022 class, Darel Morrel in the 2025 class and most recently Jhoendris Santos for big money in the 2026 class.
International Signings are also tough for MLB teams, as they are evaluating such young talent that it is tough to decide whether a player is worth signing for six-figures or seven-figures.
Understanding the International Signing Period
The International Signing Period includes players that are already 16 before they sign and not older than 17 before Sept. 1 of the next year, meaning they have to be born between Sept. 1, 2008 to Aug. 31, 2009 for the Class of 2026.
MLB teams have a certain amount of money to spend, a bonus pool, based on a variety of factors like revenue, market size and money earned from trades. Teams can only spend what they're allotted pool and nothing more.
The Pirates had the highest pool in 2026 of $8,034,900, which the Arizona Diamondbacks, Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Guardians, Colorado Rockies, Kansas City Royals and St. Louis Cardinals all have as well.
Deals for $10,000 or less don't count against the bonus pool, so teams can use that money on just one player, like the Los Angeles Dodgers did with Japanese right-handed pitcher Roki Sasaki.
Both top prospects for the Pirates last season in outfielders Esmerlyn Valdez and Edward Florentino were both signed during this period from the Dominican Republic in 2021 and 2024, respectively.
Some of the better players for the Pirates have come from international signings, like catcher Manny Sanguillen, outfielder Starling Marte and third baseman Aramis Ramírez.
Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.