Dodgers News: Dodgers Scouted Cuban Shortstop Aledmys Diaz

Since the Guggenheim Group took over for embattled owner Frank McCourt, Stan Kasten and company have placed a strong emphasis on international scouting.

Yasiel Puig, Hyun-Jin Ryu and Alexander Guerrero have all been signed and they recently scouted Cuban catcher Yenier Bello. Puig and Ryu both starred in 2013 with Guerrero expected to take over in the infield in 2014. However, according to Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports, they scouted another Cuban infielder in Mexico recently:

Teams that had large presences at a recent Aledmys Diaz showcase in Mexico included Braves, Yankees, Giants, Dodgers, Blue Jays and Cards.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 9, 2013

The 23-year-old infielder was suspended for a year after falsifying his age, claiming he was born on January 8, 1990, but was actually born eight months later on August 1, 1990. Diaz had a triple slash of .315/.404/.500 with 12 home runs during the 2011-12 season, his last in Cuba before defecting to the United States.

He’s eligible to sign with teams on February 19 with many believing that he’ll become a second baseman once he makes it to the big leagues. A lot of the Dodgers interest would hinge on what they decide to do with Guerrero and if Juan Uribe re-signs at third base.

At this point, the Dodgers seem interested in just about every international prospect that can be a free agent as it’ll be interesting to see if talks pick up once Diaz is eligible to sign.

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