Mets sign Simon Juan in strong international signing class

Five-tool outfielders from the Dominican Republic headline the Mets’ signing class.

New York Mets general manager Billy Eppler got busy in his first international signing period with the club. The Mets had a total pool of $5,179,700 to sign free agent prospects.

The biggest name on the list for the Mets is Dominican outfielder Simon Juan, who reportedly received a $1.9 million bonus.

Juan is ranked the No. 16 international free agent in the 2022 signing period by MLB Pipeline. Juan, 17, is listed at 6-2 and 175 pounds and throws/bats right-handed.

The Mets also inked Dominican outfielder Willy Fañas for a reported $1.5 million. Fañas was not listed in MLB Pipeline’s top 50 overall prospects but received a significant bonus from the Mets, which indicates the club likes his tools; he’s a switch-hitter.

MLB’s Jesse Sanchez noted that both Juan and Fañas are strong in all five tools.

According to Baseball America‘s tracker, the Mets have signed seven notable prospects already. Here’s the list:

• Simon Juan, OF, Dominican Republic
• Willy Fañas, OF, Dominican Republic
• Dangelo Sarmiento, SS, Venezuela
• Jesus Baez, SS, Dominican Republic
• Jeffry Rosa, OF, Dominican Republic
• Yonatan Henriquez, SS, Dominican Republic
• Orangel Rodriguez, C, Venezuela

The Mets listed 21 total prospect signings.

The @Mets have signed 21 international players. Here is the full recap of the day. #LGM https://t.co/oEtAovL7ry

— Mets Player Development (@MetsPlayerDev) January 15, 2022