Astros sign 15 free agents

The Astros announced the signing of 15 international free agents Saturday, the first day of the 2022 international signing period.

Houston has a $5,179,700 bonus pool with which to work, according to Baseball America. The international signing period runs through Dec. 15, 2022.

Twelve of the Astros’ 15 signees are from the Dominican Republic and another three are from Cuba.

Dominican outfielder Luis Baez and Cuban outfielder Kenni Gomez are considered the best player in the team’s class. Baseball America ranked Baez the No. 27 prospect in the international signing class while MLBPipeline ranked Gomez No. 42.

Houston signed Gomez for $775,000, a person familiar with the deal said. Multiple reports indicate Baez’s signing bonus is more than $1 million.

“Luis Báez projects to be an everyday right fielder with a special bat,” Astros Dominican Republic scouting supervisor Alfredo Ulloa said in a news release. “Báez has a solid and durable build with above average strength for his age. He projects to hit in the middle of the order.”

Cuban infielder Alberto Hernandez fetched a $950,000 signing bonus and Cuban righty Carlos Espinosa got $480,000, a person familiar with the deals said.