Usually, when we talk about international players, we’re talking about the international signees who can join MLB organizations as young as 18 years old. But that’s not the only path to pro baseball. As college baseball has become an ever more important development path for players — and federations — around the globe, there are many players born outside the 50 U.S. states selected in the Draft who are worth highlighting.
1. Rintaro Sasaki (Japan) – Marlins, 8th round
He may have lasted until the eighth round, but few players outside of the top selections have drawn as much attention as the Japanese slugger. The all-time high school home run leader in Japan, Sasaki opted to skip the NPB and head to America for college at Stanford. In his second season at Stanford, the Draft-eligible sophomore smashed 16 home runs while posting a solid .403 OBP and .549 slugging percentage. He then showed off a glimpse of that light-tower power at the Draft Combine when he smashed a ball at 115.4 mph and had two of the four longest home runs of the day at 458 and 434 feet.
“Huge,” Marlins area scout Scott Fairbanks said about Sasaki’s power. “It’s hard to find. That’s a big reason why I like him. His name came up on the board. You look around, it’s just not out there, so it’s unbelievably valuable. So, when you can grab something like that, you just do it.”
He’ll have a choice to sign with the NPB’s SoftBank Hawks, the Marlins or return to Stanford for another season. Reports on Wednesday said he was going to sign with the Marlins, but no official decision has been reached.
2. Carter Beck (Canada) – Braves, 1st round
After Beck was selected by the Braves with the 26th overall pick in the Draft, the Saskatchewan native — the highest-ever player ever selected from the Canadian province — was already back on the field where he grew up, helping other kids try and follow in his footsteps.
Hailing from Carnduff, a town with a population of just north of 1,000, Beck hammered pitching while at Indiana State, hitting 16 home runs and posting a 1.083 OPS. He helped show that Major League talent can come from every corner of the world.
“It shows our young kids or young athletes coming up that, hey, this kid played on the same diamonds or this guy played on the same diamonds that you’re playing on right now,” Trevor Geiger, the former president of Carnduff Minor Ball and a current coach with the organization, told Discover Weyburn. “And it is incredibly exciting for our young athletes to show that, hey, you can make it. Your dreams are possible no matter where you’re from.”
Though MLB Pipeline notes that his swing is a bit unorthodox and stiff, “he’s a favorite of analytically minded teams, who love his contact rates and exit velocities.”
3. Fabio Bundi (Switzerland) – Marlins, 11th round
There has only been one Swiss-born player in the Major Leagues: Otto Hess, a Bern, Switzerland, native who last appeared on a big league field in 1915. But while he was from Switzerland, he didn’t grow up there or play the game in Switzerland. Bundi did — suiting up for the Zurich Barracudas and appearing at the 2023 and 2025 European Baseball Championships for the Swiss.
Featuring a mid-90s fastball and posting a 2.20 ERA with 101 K’s in 86 innings at Monterey Peninsula, Bundi was set to head to UCLA in the fall. He’ll now have the choice to sign with the Marlins and begin his pro career or become the first Swiss-developed baseball player in the Big 10.
4. Mathis Nayral (France) – Blue Jays, 13th round
At the same time that Matthias LaCombe, the second-ever drafted French player, was promoted to Double-A by the White Sox, the Blue Jays took the third French player in Draft history: Kansas University and Montpellier, France, native Mathis Nayral. A 6-foot-5 right-hander with a fastball that sits in the low 90s but can reach 96, Nayral took the mound 18 times for the Jayhawks, striking out 71 batters in 69 innings with a 4.96 ERA.
5. Eric Guevara (Panama) – Marlins, 7th round
After injuries limited him in his first two seasons at Auburn, he exploded this last season with a .322 average, 13 home runs and SEC all-defensive honors at the hot corner.
6. Elliot Lascelles (Canada) – Padres, 2nd round
Lascelles may have been the second Canuck selected, but many believe that he may have been the best Canadian hitter in the Draft. The Yale commit — he’ll line up next to Czechia’s Max Prejda should he head to school — showed off his bat against pro pitching this spring and he hit .389 in 54 at-bats against Minor League arms. MLB Pipeline notes that he has “a little bit of an unorthodox setup at the plate, with his elbows far apart and a steep bat path when he swings, but he routinely sends line drives up the middle with a left- to-right-center field approach.”
7. Juriel Collazo (Puerto Rico) – Rockies, 13th round
It took 13 rounds before a Puerto Rican-born player was selected — the first time since 1989, when P.R. players became eligible for the Draft, that it took so long for one to be selected — but the Rockies may have a steal. Perfect Game ranked Collazo as the No. 1 outfielder and No. 3 overall player from Puerto Rico and scouts have noted his plus-plus running speed and solid arm in the outfield. Just 17 years old, he has time to develop.
8. Carlos Sanchez (Venezuela) – Orioles, 10th round
Originally born in Maracaibo, Venezuela, Sanchez broke out at LSU Shreveport this past year. The catcher hit was named Red River Athletic Conference Player of the Year after hitting .388 with 12 home runs and stealing 37 bases, while also winning a conference Gold Glove award. From there, he went to the MLB Draft League and kept up the hot hitting: He won Player of the Week to start the season and he ended his season second in RBIs, third in hits, and tied for fourth in runs and stolen bases.
9. Max Irving (Aruba) – Dodgers, 18th round
There are three active Arubans in the Majors this season with Xander Bogaerts, Antwone Kelly, and Chadwick Tromp all hailing from the Caribbean island. Max Irving will look to be the next one. A switch-hitting high school shortstop out of Florida’s Monterverde Academy, he hit .474 with seven home runs and 14 stolen bases this season. He’s committed to the University of South Florida next year if he doesn’t sign a deal with L.A.
10. Emanuel Hernandez (Puerto Rico) – Cubs, 13th round
A catcher coming out of Carlos Beltrán’s Baseball Academy, Hernandez represented Puerto Rico at last year’s U-18 World Cup, where he homered against Korea. He is committed to Miami University in Ohio in the fall.
