Jhonny Pereda may one day claim to have achieved something that perhaps no one else could replicate. He made it to the big leagues all the way from the Venezuelan Summer League.
Pereda made his MLB debut with the Miami Marlins on April 17th after spending 11 years in the minors waiting for his promotion.
The Venezuelan Summer League was the first league for many players when they signed their first professional baseball contract in Venezuela. However, it no longer exists. Typically, when a Venezuelan-born baseball player signs a contract with any of the 30 teams of Major League Baseball, they usually play one or more years in the Dominican Summer League as the initial stage of their development process, unless their name is Ethan Salas or they belong to a similar prospect category.
In such cases, they play in the United States straight away.
Currently, there are 40 active players in professional baseball who previously played in that league; 18 of them played at least one game in Major League Baseball in 2024, including Astros IF José Altuve, Twins’ RHP Pablo Lopez, Dbacks’ IF Eugenio Suarez, Cubs’ RHP Adbert Alzolay, Phillies’ LHP Ranger Suarez, among others.
This is impressive, especially considering that the Venezuelan Summer League ceased operations 9 years ago.
“I think that the Venezuelan Summer League was a success, and that’s why there are active players who played there despite the VSL ceasing operations almost 10 years ago,» said a National League scout speaking under anonymity. «For a young player who was in his first year as a professional, it was an advantage to stay in his country with his family during his first year of development. In fact, there was a time when there was no difference in the competition level between the Dominican Republic and Venezuela, and the clubs sent players from Venezuela directly to the United States”.
Two players could potentially join Pereda someday. Moises Gomez, currently with the St. Louis Cardinals’ Triple-A affiliate, and Carlos Guzman, a prospect from the Mets organization, who is playing with the Double-A affiliate.
If neither of them makes it to the big leagues, Jhonny Pereda will be the last player ever to have made it to the majors all the way from the Venezuelan Winter League.
The other 19 players who are still active in professional baseball are exclusively playing in the Winter League or in Mexico.
Pereda played in the Venezuelan Summer League from 2013 to 2014 for the Chicago Cubs, his first club in professional baseball. The Cubs held out as long as they could to remain in Venezuela, along with the Seattle Mariners, Detroit Tigers, Philadelphia Phillies, and the Tampa Bay Rays.
All of them decided to leave the country in 2015 and never returned, something that Johan Belisario, a former Detroit Tigers minor league pitcher who spent four years in the Venezuelan Summer League, regrets.
“I never played in the Dominican Summer League, but I’ve heard that their complexes are better than what the Venezuelan Summer League used to have», said Belisario, who is still active in the Venezuelan Winter League. «They have better dorms, gyms, and they can provide meals for their players. However, there is something in Venezuela that helped the players a lot in their development process: the Paralela League. We gained a lot of experience playing in the Paralela League because we used to compete against players from Double-A and Triple-A affiliates”.
The official name of the Paralela League was the Development League, and it was played simultaneously with the Venezuelan Winter League. The second-tier affiliate teams from the Winter League used to compete against MLB affiliates from the VSL. It served as a development program for young players who didn’t make the roster of their teams in the Winter League. The Paralela League lasted a bit longer than the Venezuelan Summer League but ceased operations after the 2017 season.
This is a topic that no one brings to the table anymore, but MLB clubs had a great advantage with their complexes in Venezuela. They were able to bring a player for 30 days and evaluate him in every aspect of the game. That’s why the Houston Astros were able to sign Jose Altuve against all odds because they were able to see him play for a month, and he was able to convince the Astros to sign him.
Altuve has the best story to come out of the Venezuelan Summer League, but a few other players have also benefited from their time there. This is something that no longer happens for amateur Venezuelan-born players
“They ceased operations because of the political situation», said Belisario in a WhatsApp message. «At some point, it was very difficult to buy food for the players and to guarantee their security. Despite that, it would be awesome if someday the academies could be back. I think it would be helpful for a lot of young players. In Venezuela, we have a lot of great people who know a lot about baseball, and they are not working in the industry. For example, Josman Robles is one of a kind. He always teaches us about the mental aspect of the game. I learned a lot in the Venezuelan Summer League about good behavior as a citizen”.
Josman Robles worked in the Venezuelan Summer League for many years. He played various roles for the Detroit Tigers from 2006 to 2019 and even managed their team. He also worked in the Florida Marlins and the Boston Red Sox organizations from 1997 to 2005. During his tenure in the system, he specialized as a hitting and mental coach. He currently runs his own private batting academy where he gives lessons to young players in Venezuela.
“I do believe that if MLB academies had remained in Venezuela, a large number of Venezuelan-born players would have made it to the majors,” said Robles in a Zoom conversation. “I think that a Venezuelan-born player who signs a professional contract and stays in Venezuela for the first stage of his development process does have a better chance of better development. This is a fact”.
The Detroit Tigers were a very influential organization in Venezuela at the time. Despite having the best player ever born in Venezuela, Miguel Cabrera, the Tigers also developed another 13 players from their farm system in Venezuela who made it to the big leagues, with the Dbacks’ infielder Eugenio Suarez at the top of the list.
That changed drastically in the past few years. The Detroit Tigers have no Venezuelan-born players on their 2024 MLB roster for the first time since the 2000 season. In fact, there are only four Venezuelan-born players among the Detroit Tigers’ top 30 prospects in the MLB Pipeline ranking, and only three of them were developed in Venezuela, as Wilmer Flores signed with them out of the Arizona Western College.
«The cessation of the Venezuelan Summer League halted the growth of baseball in Venezuela», Robles said. «It still exists, but it’s not like it used to be. I am convinced that the number of players who fall by the wayside would decrease in Venezuela if the academies were to return».
In the past, Venezuela was also able to develop great pitchers. In the 2006 World Baseball Classic, Luis Sojo managed a rotation featuring Johan Santana, Freddy García, Carlos Zambrano, and Kelvim Escobar. That was a pretty darn good pitching rotation even for a Major League Baseball team, and Anibal Sanchez and Felix Hernandez were on their way to becoming great pitchers as well.
But there are only seven Venezuelan-born active pitchers who have thrown at least 150 innings in the past 10 years in a single season: Martin Perez, Antonio Senzatela, German Marquez, Luis Garcia, Eduardo Rodriguez, Pablo Lopez, and Ranger Suarez.
Lopez and Suarez are the only ones who have played at least one game in 2024 and are under 30 years old.
«I have no doubt that MLB clubs are open-minded about coming back to Venezuela,» said the NL scout quoted above. «But I do think that some things have to change in order for that to happen».
Si quieres leer este artículo en español entra en El Emergente
Photos/Fotos: @Phillies, @Leones_CBBC
Excelente trabajo muy bien escrito y nos recuerda de donde han salido nuestros grandes ligas que hoy brillan, muchas gracias TheBeatwriter