Yadier

Alvarez

Alvarez, who received a $16 million signing bonus back in 2015 and was regarded as a consensus top-100 prospect just a few seasons ago, has yet to advance past Double-A Tulsa in the Dodgers’ minor-league system. The hard-throwing 25-year-old righty, who was jettisoned from the Dodgers’ 40-man roster back in 2020, made just three appearances in the Arizona Complex League last season. It would be a remarkable comeback story if he were able to finally make it to the majors.

Alvarez was designated for assignment last week and has now been outrighted after clearing waivers. The 23-year-old was a big-ticket signing out of Cuba a few years ago, but his career has been plagued by under-performance and disciplinary issues.

Alvarez was scratched from a start on Friday with no reason given. He missed most of last season for disciplinary reasons and is still on the restricted list. The Dodgers seem to have finally run out of patience with the former top 100 prospect.

Alvarez was scratched from his scheduled spring outing on Friday after he felt something amiss while warming up. No word yet what specifically is bothering the young right-hander. The former top 100 prospect barely pitched last year and was suspended for disciplinary reasons.

The 23-year-old only pitched 3 2/3 innings at Double-A during the 2019 season and finished the year on suspension for unspecified disciplinary reasons. Once considered a top prospect, Alvarez could make some noise in Dodgers’ camp, but he’ll need to be able to get on the mound to do so.

The 23-year-old hurler is currently on the restricted list for unspecified disciplinary reasons. He pitched just two games at Double-A Tulsa in 2019 and eventually left the team. Once considered one of the better pitching prospects in the game, it’ll be interesting to see if he can get his career back on track.

Ken Gurnick of MLB.com says Alvarez has been suspended for unspecified disciplinary reasons. He is not on the 40-man roster while serving the suspension. Alvarez was signed for $16 million (and the Dodgers had to pay an additional $16 million for exceeding their international spending limit) out of a Cuba a few years back but hasn’t worked out to this point.

The 22-year-old was never going to crack the Dodgers’ Opening Day rotation, so this move doesn’t come as a surprise. He’ll begin the year pitching every fifth day at Triple-A.

Alvarez has seen his stock diminish over the past few seasons, but he would have been an early pick in the Rule 5 draft based on talent alone. The right-hander has struggled to throw strikes and there have been widely-spread rumors about attitude issues, but he also can touch the high 90s and shows two swing-and-miss secondary pitches. The 2019 season will be a big year to determine what the 22-year-old’s future holds.

He surrendered three walks while throwing 43 of his 75 pitches for strikes. Lansing didn’t record its first hit until second baseman John La Prise slashed a single to center field off Luis De Paula with one out in the sixth inning. The 20-year-old from Cuba has dominated since moving to the Midwest League, contributing a sturdy 2.36 ERA over six starts for the Loons.