When the 2023 signing period began last month the word was that signings of players from Mexico would be a little bit behind because the league down there and Major League Baseball had just finalized their working agreement a few days prior to the signing period beginning. Three weeks ago the team picked up veteran Mexican League pitcher Wilmer Rios (who will be pitching for Team Mexico in the World Baseball Classic next month). The Cincinnati Reds have now picked up another pitcher from Mexico, signing 16-year-old left-handed pitcher Christian Lopez.
Christian Lopez Scouting Report
He’s a big, physical kid, listed at 6′ 2″ tall and 207 lbs. He’s got a chance to stick as a starter. Lopez has a low-effort delivery. His fastball is up to 88 MPH with good angle, and he has a chance to add more velocity as he continues to develop. The lefty has a breaking ball that works in the low-to-mid 70’s with depth. Both his fastball and breaking ball have high spin rates.
Signing class update
The signing brings the Reds total to 17 players now, including both Lopez and Rios. Nine of those signings are pitchers, with four of them being left-handed pitchers (Bryan Diaz, Dominic Scheffler, Rios, and Lopez). What’s interesting here is that after the initial set of signings that came on the first and second day of the signing period, all three signings since then by Cincinnati have been left-handed pitchers.
There are five right-handed pitchers, four shortstops, one player that was classified as a utility player, two outfielders, and one catcher to go along with the four left-handed pitchers. Given that all of these players are 16 or 17-years-old with the exception of Wilmer Rios, those positions could change as they continue to mature and develop (well, except the pitchers who are almost assuredly going to remain pitchers).