Mariners are already stealing from the Yankees with 2027 international signings

The window for MLB teams to sign international amateur free agents for this year only just opened, yet the Seattle Mariners have already gotten unexpected good news on the 2027 signing window.

Mairon De La Rosa, a highly regarded shortstop out of the Dominican Republic, had been expected to sign a $4.3 million bonus with the New York Yankees until, suddenly, he wasn't. As reported by MLB insider Héctor Gómez, the two sides abruptly parted ways on Saturday.

On Sunday, MLB insider Francys Romero reported on a new agreement between De La Rosa and the Mariners for $3.8 million:

Of note is that De La Rosa accepted less money from the Mariners. It's a case of highway robbery for Seattle, and it feels like a damning indictment of the Yankees as well.

The Yankees' loss is the Mariners' gain with Mairon De La Rosa's decision

As with all international amateurs, De La Rosa's upside is very much in the abstract right now. He's only a teenager, and will thus need years of development in the minors even after he officially puts pen to paper next year.

That said, the book on De La Rosa is eye-opening. He's a switch-hitter who supposedly has blazing speed and a big-time power projection. If those skills translate to games and get sharper as he advances, then the Mariners are looking at having a potential superstar on the middle of their infield.

Per Joe Doyle of Over-Slot Baseball, the Mariners are also expected to sign shortstop Eudi Yuten in 2027. He's a switch-hitter in his own right, and is said to project as a plus defender.

Even if the moves won't be official for another year, go ahead and add two more high-upside prospects to a seemingly constantly expanding collection for the Mariners. The team is fresh off scoring some top talent with its 2026 signings, and they're the only one with seven prospects in MLB Pipeline's new top 100.

Unfortunately for the Yankees, this pretty much makes the Mariners' player development machine the opposite of the one that exists in New York right now.

Though they have been pretty good at developing pitching, the Yankees have had trouble cracking the formula for developing major league hitters. And even before they whiffed on De La Rosa, they had already had two other high-profile international amateurs back out of agreements and sign with other teams.

It's hard to separate the Yankees' sudden misfortune on the international market from their recent decision to fire international scouting director Donny Rowland. That decision was perhaps a long time coming, but that position remains unfilled even months later. Simply on that basis, one can begin to understand De La Rosa's decision to back out.

As for him taking less money to sign with the Mariners, well, that's just insult to injury for the Yankees. It's obviously a win for Seattle, and one that might not have been possible if the organization didn't have a well-earned reputation as one that knows prospects.