According to a story initially broken by Francys Romero and since confirmed by multiple industry sources, Dominican shortstop Wandy Asigen will be signing with the Mets when the 2026 international free agent signing period begins on January 15th. Considered one of the premier talents available in the 2026 international free agent class, listed at four on the Baseball America 2026 International Prospects Bonus Board and two on MLB.com’s 2026 International Prospect Rankings, the 16-year-old middle
infielder is widely believed to be an impact performer with the bat and with the glove.
Asigen had initially been connected to the Yankees and had reached a verbal agreement to sign with them for a $4.3 million signing bonus but recently backed out of the handshake deal. It is currently unclear if his decision was related to the fact that the Yankees do not currently have Director of International Scouting since electing to not renew former director Donny Rowland’s expired contract, Rowland’s dismissal itself, or some other factor.
Such informal agreements are part and parcel for the current international free agent signing process. After seeing players as young as 12 or 13 work out in front of their scouts, evaluators, and executives, teams hone in on individuals and offer them informal verbal deals for future guaranteed money, since the legal age a player is allowed to sign a professional contract is 16. With these deals in place, the players generally withdraw from open showcases and exhibitions, making them “off limits” to other organizations in an unspoken gentleman’s agreement. Teams regularly renege on such deals when it suits them- former Mets farmhand Willy Fañas famously had the Los Angeles Angels go back on a deal they had with him, prompting him and another spurned minor leaguer to file a lawsuit against the team in a Dominican court- but it is rare for a player of Asigen’s perceived value to be the party to back out of the deal.
While the $3.8 million dollar bonus Asigen will be reportedly receiving is sizable, it will not exceed the $5 million bonus given to Elian Peña last season. It will however represent the second-highest bonus given to an international rookie, with Yovanny Rodriguez ($2.85, 2024), Francisco Alvarez ($2.7, 2018), and Ronny Mauricio ($2.1, 2017) rounding out the organizational top 5.
Prior to agreeing to verbal terms with Asigen, the highest touted player the Mets were connected to was Venezuelan third baseman Josue Chacoa, who was expected to sign for somewhere over $2 million. The deal was canceled and the player suspended earlier this year when an MLB investigation found discrepancies in his paperwork, eventually discovering that that Chacoa had misrepresented his identity and that he was older than he initially claimed to be (18, not 16). Seemingly, it is because of the money freed up by the Chacoa deal falling through that the Mets have the bonus pool funds to sign Asigen. With a $5,440,000 limit, the Mets are one of four teams to have the smallest bonus pool for the upcoming international free agent signing period, along with the Houston Astros, Yankees, and San Francisco Giants.
Currently, outside of Asigen, the next highest touted player the Mets are connected with is Cleiner Ramirez, an outfielder from Venezuela who was ranked 20th on Baseball America’s International Prospects Bonus Board list and 23rd on MLB.com’s 2026 International Prospect Rankings. Deducting Asigen’s reported $3.8 million signing bonus, the team will only have $1.6 million to divvy up among Cleiner Ramirez and any other international prospects they are interested in.
While Director of International Scouting James Kang cannot be truly credited for the Elian Peña signing, as the dynamic infielder initially agreed to informal terms with the Mets while Steve Barningham was in the position, pivoting to agree to terms with Asigen is a major coup and feather in his cap, hopefully one of many in the years ahead.
