From D.R. to the MLB

New Major League Baseball rules have changed the game. The MLB has capped the amount teams can spend on amateur, free agent players in the international market. This directly affects the Dominican Republic because the D.R. is the number one source for international baseball players. History has proven the exceptional talent that stems from the country and the D.R. is typically the first place to look for relatively cheaper signing contracts into the farm leagues.

http://www.caribbeanlogue.com/going-to-a-baseball-game-in-the-dominican-republic.html

In the Dominican Republic, baseball comes before education. If you decide to play baseball, you only play baseball. This is a major concern and agencies are in place to develop educational programs. However, do the new rules help or further hurt this issue? Let's take a look.

Teams are now limited to $2.9 million on international players, tax-free. This rule was aimed at helping the teams with lower payrolls, who aren't able to compete for top prospects from countries like the Dominican Republic. Unfortunately this hurts the Dominican Republic baseball league because there are only a limited number of MLB teams and now international players might be overlooked, or paid less than their true value. Once in the league, they will be able to renegotiate a higher salary.

Below is a video regarding the youth's dream to play in the major leagues.

Has the stride for wealth hurt the domestic economy? I think so, which is why I'd like to see the leaders of D.R. establish a stronger push for education and baseball together, not as separates.

FACTS

Average D.R. Income: $2,000
Average D.R. Baseball Player Income: $3,250,000

SOURCES

http://espn.go.com/espn/otl/story/_/page/MLB-rule-change/major-league-baseball-rule-change-free-agent-pay-causes-concern-dominican-republic-venezuela

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ds09-kyZ8mU