On Thursday, the 2026 international signing period opened up in baseball. And, as suspected, the San Francisco Giants were waiting in the wings to make a huge splash.
The Giants sent a large contingency to their Felipe Alou Baseball Academy in the Dominican Republic, to mark a momentous occasion: the signing of Venezuelan shortstop Luis Hernández. The right-handed hitter, who turned 17 last month, had a verbal agreement with the Giants for a few years, but on Thursday was able to put ink to paper,
and officially join the organization, where he immediately becomes one of their top prospects. The team excitedly announced the news on social media.
Hernández reportedly earned a signing bonus of $5 million, which is notable for two reasons. First, it makes him the second-highest paid international signing in franchise history, trailing only Lucius Fox. And second, it used up nearly all of their signing bonus pool, as the team had an MLB-low $5,440,000 to spend on international signings.
But top heavy is unquestionably the right way to handle international free agency — when it’s available — and it marks the second year in a row that the Giants have signed the consensus top prospect from Latin America, following their 2025 signing of fellow shortstop Josuar González … a move that looked great at the time, and looks even better now.
Needless to say, Hernández is wildly talented. He has sensational bat speed, but pairs it with tremendous contact ability. His defense is as impressive as it is fluid, and he’s a threat on the base paths. In 2025 he played in Liga Mayor de Béisbol — Venezuela’s Major Leagues — and, despite facing many pitchers who were a decade or more older than he was, hit .346/.386/.452 with just 11 strikeouts in 114 plate appearances during the regular season. He’s the total package, and a player it’s easy to dream about being the best prospect in baseball … and, eventually, an MLB star.
It appears that fans in the US may not have to wait long to see Hernández play. Last month, NBC Sports Bay Area’s Alex Pavlovic reported that the Giants were planning on having the young prodigy come straight to the states, rather than have a standard stint in the Dominican Summer League. It’s an exceedingly rare developmental move, and one that speaks to Hernández’s polish despite his age — though it’s worth noting that in his article about Thursday’s signing, Pavlovic used less concrete language, stating “it’s possible that he will skip the Dominican Summer League and go straight to Arizona.” The Giants are not tipping their hand here, with international scouting director Joe Salermo telling reporters, “We’re looking forward to him … playing at whatever level he plays at,” but admitting that he hopes Hernández comes straight to the states.
Regardless, with Hernández, González, and Jhonny Level, the Giants have built an outstanding amount of shortstop depth through the international market, which they supplemented when they used their 2025 first-round draft pick on Gavin Kilen. It will be a very fun year for Giants prospect fans who like middle infielders.
Because the Giants used the bulk of their signing pool on Hernández, they were limited to a very small class of international signings. Usually they sign 10-20 players at the start of the period (last year it was 15), but on Thursday they announced just three signings. Their second-biggest catch was right-handed pitcher Alexis Gallego from Mexico, who received a signing bonus of $375,000. Baseball America described Gallego as “6-foot-1, 180 pounds with a fastball up to 93 mph and the look of a pitcher who should be into the mid 90s soon. It’s a starter look between his athleticism, pitchability and feel for both his slider and changeup.”
Their third and final signing was 5’11 center fielder Angel Ugueto from Venezuela. His father, Luis, played briefly for the Seattle Mariners in 2002 and 2003.
The Giants can still sign additional international free agents, despite using up their modest bonus pool. Players signed for $10,000 do not count towards the pool, and the team can acquire additional pool space in a trade with another organization. But for now, it’s a tiny class, headlined by someone who could one day be a cornerstone of the franchise.
