According to various sources, including <a href="https://www.si.com/fannation/mlb/fastball/news/toronto-blue-jays-set-to-sign-exciting-shortstop-christopher-polanco-out-of-dominican-republic">Sports Illustrated</a>, the Toronto Blue Jays are expected to sign shortstop<a href="https://www.mlb.com/milb/prospects/2025/international/cristopher-polanco-829057"> Christopher Polanco</a> as part of the 2025 international signing period. 
This year’s period will begin on January 15th, 2025, with Japanese right-hander Roki Sasaki being the<a href="https://www.mlb.com/milb/prospects/2025/international/cristopher-polanco-829057"> top-ranked player</a> available this year. 
<h2>Christopher Polanco: Scouting Report and Analysis </h2>
Polanco is a 17-year-old middle infielder out of Monte Plata, Dominican Republic, an area that has produced the likes of Elly De La Cruz, Camilo Doval, and Jose Siri at the big league level. He currently trains with Baseball Academy D&amp;A and is ranked #22 on MLB Pipeline&#8217;s international prospect rankings. 
When looking at Polanco from both the offensive and defensive viewpoints, he’s noticeable on the field and holds an athletic presence on the left side of second base. Polanco has a slim-build athletic frame standing 5’11” at 170 lbs.  At 17 years of age, he has a lot of physical development still to go, but his baseline build is impressive. The shortstop hits from the left side and throws from the right. His left-handed bat adds value to his overall profile, along with his repeatable swing.
His swing is short and compact. He stays inside the ball, keeping his hands tight and into his body, and directs the barrel well to the ball. Polanco’s swing has some power and his bat speed is above average, which should get quicker as he develops in a professional organization&#8217;s system. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="550" data-dnt="true">
With Major League Baseball’s international signing period for the 2025 class opening on Jan. 15, Baseball America’s international expanded bonus board is here.<a href="https://t.co/DGANAmTEXT">https://t.co/DGANAmTEXT</a> <a href="https://t.co/CzeqN24P7x">pic.twitter.com/CzeqN24P7x</a>
&mdash; Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) <a href="https://twitter.com/BaseballAmerica/status/1868673186449019199?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 16, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
He makes solid contact and can push or pull the ball both ways. The lefty-bat keeps his weight properly on his backside, transitioning that power on the swing, exploding on contact. 
Defensively, evaluators see the infielder as average or just above, with a 45 on the 20-80 grade scale. Polanco’s speed isn’t a present baseline tool of strength but that can be constructed. However, he is smooth on his feet and moves well in the hole with a strong arm that follows through each play. Polanco isn’t exactly your projected shortstop but can fill the role; chances are, moving to second base may be the best move for him in the future although the likelihood of him getting a chance to get started at shortstop to begin his career is high. 
<h2>The Compensation</h2>
Polanco is expected to be Toronto’s highest-valued signing in this year’s international class. The monetary estimate for the Dominican shortstop is projected to be upwards of $1 million and could surpass that.  The Blue Jays sit in a signing bonus pool worth $6,261,600 amongst 10 other teams. The club has also been linked to Roki Sasaki, the Japanese pitcher who is the darling of the 2025 international signing period, so it will be interesting to see how things shake up in regards to Toronto&#8217;s pursuit of the right-hander and the money that is allocated to players like Polanco with the signing period set to begin within the next five days. 
The Blue Jays had some success in last year’s<a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/an-early-look-at-the-2024-mlb-international-free-agency-period"> international signing period</a>, beefing up their farm system with mostly positional prospects. Franklin Rojas, a catcher from Venezuela, was Toronto’s top signing. Rojas earned $997,500 while outfielder Andres Arias and infielder Angel Guzman cashed in at $897,500 and $767,500 respectively. The club was also set to sign Kennew Blanco, who was poised to earn the most of the group in the form of a $1.7 million bonus, but the Blue Jays pulled out of the deal when it was learned that he was 17 years old, not 16. The expectation is that the Jays will sign him for a lesser amount this upcoming year.

According to various sources, including <a href="https://www.si.com/fannation/mlb/fastball/news/toronto-blue-jays-set-to-sign-exciting-shortstop-christopher-polanco-out-of-dominican-republic">Sports Illustrated</a>, the Toronto Blue Jays are expected to sign shortstop<a href="https://www.mlb.com/milb/prospects/2025/international/cristopher-polanco-829057"> Christopher Polanco</a> as part of the 2025 international signing period. 

This year’s period will begin on January 15th, 2025, with Japanese right-hander Roki Sasaki being the<a href="https://www.mlb.com/milb/prospects/2025/international/cristopher-polanco-829057"> top-ranked player</a> available this year. 
<h2>Christopher Polanco: Scouting Report and Analysis </h2>
Polanco is a 17-year-old middle infielder out of Monte Plata, Dominican Republic, an area that has produced the likes of Elly De La Cruz, Camilo Doval, and Jose Siri at the big league level. He currently trains with Baseball Academy D&amp;A and is ranked #22 on MLB Pipeline's international prospect rankings. 

When looking at Polanco from both the offensive and defensive viewpoints, he’s noticeable on the field and holds an athletic presence on the left side of second base. Polanco has a slim-build athletic frame standing 5’11” at 170 lbs.  At 17 years of age, he has a lot of physical development still to go, but his baseline build is impressive. The shortstop hits from the left side and throws from the right. His left-handed bat adds value to his overall profile, along with his repeatable swing.

His swing is short and compact. He stays inside the ball, keeping his hands tight and into his body, and directs the barrel well to the ball. Polanco’s swing has some power and his bat speed is above average, which should get quicker as he develops in a professional organization's system. 

https://twitter.com/BaseballAmerica/status/1868673186449019199

He makes solid contact and can push or pull the ball both ways. The lefty-bat keeps his weight properly on his backside, transitioning that power on the swing, exploding on contact. 

Defensively, evaluators see the infielder as average or just above, with a 45 on the 20-80 grade scale. Polanco’s speed isn’t a present baseline tool of strength but that can be constructed. However, he is smooth on his feet and moves well in the hole with a strong arm that follows through each play. Polanco isn’t exactly your projected shortstop but can fill the role; chances are, moving to second base may be the best move for him in the future although the likelihood of him getting a chance to get started at shortstop to begin his career is high. 
<h2>The Compensation</h2>
Polanco is expected to be Toronto’s highest-valued signing in this year’s international class. The monetary estimate for the Dominican shortstop is projected to be upwards of $1 million and could surpass that.  The Blue Jays sit in a signing bonus pool worth $6,261,600 amongst 10 other teams. The club has also been linked to Roki Sasaki, the Japanese pitcher who is the darling of the 2025 international signing period, so it will be interesting to see how things shake up in regards to Toronto's pursuit of the right-hander and the money that is allocated to players like Polanco with the signing period set to begin within the next five days. 

The Blue Jays had some success in last year’s<a href="https://bluejaysnation.com/news/an-early-look-at-the-2024-mlb-international-free-agency-period"> international signing period</a>, beefing up their farm system with mostly positional prospects. Franklin Rojas, a catcher from Venezuela, was Toronto’s top signing. Rojas earned $997,500 while outfielder Andres Arias and infielder Angel Guzman cashed in at $897,500 and $767,500 respectively. The club was also set to sign Kennew Blanco, who was poised to earn the most of the group in the form of a $1.7 million bonus, but the Blue Jays pulled out of the deal when it was learned that he was 17 years old, not 16. The expectation is that the Jays will sign him for a lesser amount this upcoming year.

Blue Jays – Scouting report on Christopher Polanco, the top international prospect linked to Toronto for the 2025 signing period

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