Gerardo Concepcion free to deal
Cuban left-handed pitcher Gerardo Concepcion has been declared a free agent and is free to negotiate with any major league team, his agent said Wednesday.
The agent, Jaime Torres, said Concepcion established residency in Mexico as of Tuesday and is presently training in the Dominican Republic. Concepcion defected from Cuba last summer during a tournament played in Europe.
The teams that have shown most interest in Concepcion include the New York Yankees, Texas Rangers, Philadelphia Phillies, Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox, Torres said.
Concepcion is scheduled for a training session Thursday at the Yankees' camp in Dominican Republic, the agent said.
Concepcion, 18, was named rookie of the year for the 2010-11 season in the Cuban Serie Nacional, the country's main amateur league. He went 10-3 with a 3.36 ERA in 21 games, including 16 starts, with Industriales de la Habana.
Concepcion defected from Cuba during the World Port Tournament in Rotterdam, Netherlands, in June 2011. That was the same tournament in which Aroldis Chapman defected in 2009, before signing a $30 million deal with the Cincinnati Reds.
Enrique Rojas is a reporter and columnist for ESPNdeportesLosAngeles.com and ESPN.com.
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