The Cincinnati Reds have signed left-handed pitcher Misael Lopez. The 18-year-old lefty signed just before the end of the 2018-2019 International Signing Period, which ended on June 15th. The next signing period won’t begin until July 2nd, when the Reds will be unrestricted in the amount that they can pay to sign a player at for the first time in three seasons.
Misael Lopez just turned 18 on May 8th. He had been pitching out of the bullpen in the Mexican League for Saltillo. The teenager made seven appearances where the league average age is 30. He allowed seven hits and walked four batters in 6.0 innings with six strikeouts and didn’t allow a home run.
His fastball is already sitting 89-94 MPH according to Reds scout Alex Ahumada. He also throws a curveball and a change up. Ahumada believes there’s more fastball in the tank.
Fun fact: Misael Lopez is the cousin of Reds prospect Jose Valenzuela.
Aristides Aquino makes the Hot Sheet
Baseball America’s Prospect Hot Sheet came out this morning and it wasn’t surprising to see Aristides Aquino on it. Coming in at the #15 spot, Aquino hit .348/.423/.957 on the week with four home runs. He’s currently riding a 20-game hit-streak. Over that stretch he’s hitting .346/.400/.692. Nearly all of his extra-base hits have left the ballpark. He’s had 17 singles, 1 double, 1 triple, and 8 home runs over the hit-streak.
Reds sign another draft pick
The Cincinnati Reds have signed another draft pick, this time agreeing to a deal with 37th round selection Caleb Van Blake. That gives the Reds 27 of their 40 draft picks signed and locked in. You can see the breakdown of everyone signed, and the draft budget at The Cincinnati Reds Draft Tracker.
On draft day here’s what was written about Caleb Van Blake, a senior sign out of UC Davis, along with his college stats:
He’s struggled to hit for average or power while at UC Davis. What he does do well is put the bat on the ball. He struck out just 18 times last season, and 22 times the season before.
College Stats
| Year | School | AB | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | K | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| 2016 | UC Davis | 61 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 7 | 1 | .213 | .258 | .328 |
| 2017 | UC Davis | 120 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 16 | 6 | 15 | 5 | .258 | .300 | .392 |
| 2018 | UC Davis | 201 | 12 | 0 | 5 | 32 | 17 | 22 | 2 | .264 | .333 | .398 |
| 2019 | UC Davis | 176 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 21 | 13 | 18 | 5 | .256 | .325 | .364 |