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The Phillies netted one of the top prospect in international free agency.
The Philadelphia Phillies secured one of the top players on the international market during the 2026 signing period, inking Venezuelan outfielder Francisco Renteria for $4 million. Renteria was ranked No. 3 in this year’s international class. Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com caught up with the Phillies scouts who evaluated Renteria prior to the signing. International scouting director Derrick Chung and international scouting senior advisor Sal Agostinelli both expressed effusive praise for Renteria.
“I would say he probably has the best mix of tools that I’ve seen doing this over the years, when it comes to, you know, the athleticism, power, the hand-eye coordination and feel to hit,” Chung said. “When we’re talking about the five tools and maybe the sixth tool of makeup … this is the best mix of tools I’ve ever seen since I started doing this.”
Renteria has already drawn comparisons to Hall of Fame outfielder Bobby Abreu. Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs slotted the 17-year-old at ninth among Philadelphia’s prospects. Renteria is at least two years younger than every other player in Longenhagen’s top 10.
“When people who know scouting see him, when they see him take BP, when they watch him in a game, they’re going to say, ‘Wow, this guy has ability,’” Agostinelli told Mayo.
How Philadelphia Phillies Scouts Found Teen Phenom
Agostinelli detailed getting a call from Latin American coordinator Carlos Salas, alerting him to Renteria. The young outfielder was barely high school-aged at the time. “He told me, ‘I need you to go see this guy,’” Agostinelli said. “We all got in there right after that quickly, and we went to see him. And progressively, it was evident he was going to be the guy we were really focusing on.”
Chung spoke to the difficulties of evaluating players at such a young age. Teenagers are still growing and developing, which means scouts have to not only project talent, but also future size and positional fit. “We get the best information we can from within our organization, from strength and conditioning guys and athletic trainers to everyone else trying to figure out the best answer possible for all of these kids.”
Renteria is still a long way off from contributing at the big-league level, yet Agostinelli slotted him in among the top names in Philadelphia’s system. He placed Aidan Miller, Andrew Painter, and Justin Crawford ahead of Renteria when compiling the verbal list, with an honorable mention to Aroon Escobar, but that was it.
Renteria Has Strong Lineage, Local Connections
Renteria is the son of Edgar Renteria, a five-time All-Star who spent 16 seasons in the big leagues. The elder Renteria debuted with the then-Florida Marlins as a 19-year-old in 1996. He won a World Series title with the Marlins in 1997, then again with the San Francisco Giants in 2010. Renteria was the MVP of the latter title team.
As Ian Harper of SI.com points out, the MLB connections don’t end with Francisco’s father. The younger Renteria is from Maracaibo, Venezuela, sharing a hometown with Milwaukee Brewers star outfielder Jackson Chourio and Hall of Fame shortstop Luis Aparicio. Chourio debuted with the Brew Crew as a 20-year-old in 2024. Aparicio was 22 years old when he first came up with the Chicago White Sox.
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