Rafael Ortega — Rockies’ Prospect Highlight

Sat, 29 Jan 2011 00:13:36 +0000

Thanks to team scouts Rolando Fernandez and Francisco Cartaya, the Rockies have become major players in Venezuela. Currently, there are seven Venezuelan natives on Colorado’s 40-Man; Fernandez and Cartaya signed four of them — Jhoulys Chacin, Franklin Morales, Edgmer Escalona, and Jonathan Herrera. The pipeline doesn’t end there. The Rockies’ minor leagues are stocked with talent brought to the organization by Venezuelan scouts. Colorado’s latest Venezuelan prize is a promising 19 year-old outfielder, Rafael Ortega.

Players like Ortega are why the Rockies scout Venezuela so thoroughly. They signed Rafael at the age of 16 for $65K; that’s probably how much Tyler Matzek paid for his first car. Prior to last season, Ortega was not a well known prospect. His signing didn’t catch much attention in Venezuela and went completely unnoticed in the States. After spending 2008 and 2009 playing in the Dominican Summer League, Ortega debuted last year with Casper. Hitting lead-off and playing center field for the Ghosts, Rafael lit up the Pioneer League and caught the attention of many. Earlier this month, Baseball Prospectus rated Ortega as the 11th best Rockies prospect. Not bad, for a guy the Rockies signed for the price of a Denver home in short sale.
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Rox Pile » Venezuela

Rafael Ortega — Rockies’ Prospect Highlight