Philadelphia Phillies Cheap International Signing Has Become Breakout Prospect

The Philadelphia Phillies have had a cheap international signing breakout in their farm system and look like a potential success story.

May 25, 2022; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Detailed view of a Philadelphia Phillies hat and glove in the dugout against the Atlanta Braves in the eighth inning at Truist Park. / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

While the Philadelphia Phillies haven't been known as a team that develops a lot of international players for their big league roster, it looks like they may have an intriguing player breaking through, however.

As the staff at MLB.com searched for breakout players across the league, Venezuelan pitcher Jean Cabrera was the answer for the Phillies.

"Cabrera wasn’t on the Philadelphia’s Top 30 at all to start the year and now he’s on the top half of the list thanks to a very strong season with High-A Jersey Shore that led to a late promotion to Double-A Reading," said the writers. "He throws a lot of strikes and misses bats with his fastball, changeup and slider. Added strength could lead to triple-digit fastballs, but he’s showing his stuff now can get hitters out."

The Phillies spent over $4.3 million on their top seven international signings back in the 2019-2020 cycle. Meanwhile, Cabrera, the best prospect of all, was signed as an unknown for just $10,000.

He's following a similar career trajectory to current Philadelphia ace Ranger Suarez, who also signed a cheap contract out of Venezeula.

The Phillies signed Suarez back in 2011. He spent eight impressive years developing in the minor leagues before finally making his mark as a 23-year-old in 2019.

In the years since, the southpaw has become a staple of the rotation and made it to his first All-Star game this past season. There was even a stretch where he was a Cy Young frount runner.

Obviously, this would be a dream outcome for both Cabrera and Philadelphia.

The 22-year-old is currently the No. 12 overall prospect in the farm system and the third-ranked pitcher. That will likely only rise as he continues to progress up until he eventually cracks the Majors.

His first couple of seasons in the minors didn't go too well, but something seems to have clicked as he's finally shown some good stuff on the mound.

Over 20 appearances this year he has a 3.80 ERA woth a 9.3 K/9 and a 2.8 BB/9. He's also cut down a good bit on hits allowed. His 1.209 WHIP is the best mark since his time in rookie ball.

Cabrera will need to add some muscle to his frame before being trusted with a spot in the rotation. He's 6-foot, but weights just 145 pounds. Pitchers that light normally end up in the bullpen rather than the rotation.