Closing of VSL poses new test for prospects

With his second consecutive 200-hit season, All-Star selection, Silver Slugger Award and first Gold Glove in 2015, 25-year-old Astros second baseman José Altuve continued to make history.
Nearly a decade after the Venezuelan Summer League gave Altuve his start on an unlikely career as a big league star, the Rookie-level circuit is history.
With a dwindling number of teams and a volatile domestic situation in Venezuela, Minor League Baseball said in January that the VSL would be shuttered for the 2016 season. That news came on the heels of the Cubs' announcement that they intended to pull out of the league this summer. The circuit was down to just four teams a year ago.
"It was really tough," Cubs director of player development Jaron Madison said from his team's complex in Mesa, Arizona earlier this month. "It's always good when those young Venezuelan kids can stay home for the first couple years and play in Venezuela where they're comfortable. It just got to a point where we thought it was best for their development."
The VSL debuted in 1997 as a stepping stone into the Minors for baseball-crazy Venezuela's youngest and best talent. While the league's inaugural season wasn't even two decades ago, it was a world away from Venezuela's current status on the international stage.
The circuit reached an apex in the early 2000s when it fielded an even dozen teams across the country. As recently as 2007, it boasted 11 teams affiliated with Major League clubs, but the following season, in the 10th year of the late Hugo Chavez's 13-year presidency, MLB clubs began to decamp. By 2012, it was down to four teams: the Mariners, Phillies, Rays and Tigers.
Baseball's current standing in the country cannot be separated from Venezuela's internal turmoil. The country's economy has been marred by instability and recession for years, spurred on by the falling price of oil -- which accounts for over 90 percent of Venezuela's exports -- political instability and much more. Venezuelans deal with chronic shortages of basic household necessities and medication which leads to skyrocketing inflation -- the world's highest rate in 2015 -- and societal unrest. Additional visa restrictions on Americans entering the country are one of the latest issues to hamper the game's progress.
"With all the challenges of getting into the country and the state of the economics of the country, it was getting dangerous in some parts," said Madison, farm director for an organization whose top two prospects -- shortstop Gleyber Torres and catcher Willson Contreras -- are Venezuelan. "And there were four teams in the league, so they were just continuing to play each other."
On top of -- and often stirred by -- it all, violent crime has soared in Venezuela. The nation's rate of 82 homicides per 100,000 placed it second in the world behind only Honduras in 2014, according to the NGO Venezuelan Violence Observatory. Last December, that group estimated the nation's 2015 rate spiked to 90 per 100,000.
Such violence has touched the Venezuelan baseball community in many ways, notably in September 2004 when then-Tigers reliever Ugueth Urbina's mother was kidnapped and held for a $6-million ransom before being rescued by an anti-kidnapping unit the following February. In 2011, Nationals catcher Wilson Ramos was abducted in front of his mother's home near Valencia and held for two days before being rescued. Just last month, Royals catcher Salvador Perezspoke out against the violence on his Instagram account after his mother was the victim of an armed robbery and carjacking in Valencia.

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Hoy en el día mi madre en (Valencia ) fue despojada de su camioneta una 4runner por hombres fuertemente armados y fue amenazada con armamento apuntados a ella. Y bueno gracias a Dios nada malo paso y los ladrones se llevaron la camioneta q fue recuperada un poco más tarde por gente de la PTJ . Mi mama gracias a Dios esta perfecta y tranquila pero gente hasta cuando ya no respetan a nadie nosotros estamos aquí poniendo el nombre de Venezuela en alto y el hampa no respetan género , profesion nada me da dolor. Gente tenemos un país q cada día se hunde más en él hambre,hampa ,escasez y falta de seguridad. Sin caer en detalles no hablo de política ni de clases sociales hablo del corazón por q están desangrando mi país. Y lo amo. Desde aquí es fácil hablar dirán muchos pero cada día lucho por mi país también y por poner el nombre en alto. Voy a seguir amándote Venezuela hoy más q nadie , sigamos luchando por una mejor Venezuela Dios está con nosotros no perdamos la fe mi gente. Te AMO MAMÁ ya casi juntos 😇😇😇😇🇻🇪🇻🇪🇻🇪🇻🇪🇻🇪🇻🇪🇻🇪🇻🇪🇻🇪🇻🇪🇻🇪 y que DIOS los cuide a todos

A post shared by Salvador Perez (@salvadorp13) on Feb 28, 2016 at 7:54pm PST

Changing landscape

Rockies outfielder Carlos Gonzalez is a native of Maracaibo and one of Venezuelan baseball's stalwarts. While coming up through the Minors and breaking into the big leagues, Gonzalez returned home to play for the Aguilas del Zulia in the Venezuelan Winter League from 2006-09. Gonzalez also donned Venezuela's maroon-and-yellow in the 2013 World Baseball Classic, and while he never played in the VSL, he's watched the situation change for prospects who have followed.
"Back in the day when I signed, I was very blessed to have the opportunity to come to the United States and play in a tournament that involved a lot of first-rounders and a lot of great players like Troy Tulowitzki and Tyler Clippard, a lot of good players," he said in the Rockies clubhouse at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick earlier this month. "I had that opportunity. Not a lot of kids have that opportunity to come here and show their abilities and their tools. A lot of scouts have to go down to our country, and I don't blame those guys for not wanting to go there because it's obviously dangerous. You don't want to risk your life because you want to look at the talent."
The VSL provided a pathway into pro ball for young Venezuelans. For many signed at 16 or 17 years old, the circuit meant their first foray into the professional game wouldn't come across an ocean but close to home.
Altuve thrived with the VSL Astros, who were based a short drive from his hometown of Maracay, batting .343/.429/.441 in 64 games and flashing the promise that would make him a Major League star. The league provided opportunities for organizations to take chances on non-traditional prospects like the 5-foot-6, 165-pound Altuve, who signed with Houston for a paltry $15,000. Other notable big leaguers who got their start on the circuit include Mets shortstop Asdrúbal Cabrera, White Sox outfielder Avisaíl García and former Mariners outfielder Wladimir Balentien, who set Japan's single-season home run record with 60 blasts in 2013 for the Yakult Swallows.
Young players signing in Venezuela now will take a different journey through the Minors. Teams like the 2015 VSL-champion Tigers will field an additional affiliate in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League. Madison's Cubs will bring their former VSL players to the Rookie-level Dominican Summer League. The Phillies also will reportedly field an additional DSL team.
"We thought bringing them to the Dominican where we just built this brand new facility that's second to none [was better]," he said. "We can house all these players and give them access to resources that they don't have in Venezuela, plus a different level of competition, more access to the rovers and coordinators that go down there. We just thought that, overall, it's a better situation for them now."

A hopeful future

The door is anything but closed to Venezuelan talent, but it may be a bit more challenging to conquer the early steps behind it. When speaking to Venezuela's next next generation, Gonzalez cautions future stars that the road is often long.
"Signing is just one thing," he said. "A lot of kids, their goal is to sign because they want to get some money out of the contract and support their family. That's the first thing I did was just take care of my family. As long as all your family, your mom, dad, brothers, sisters are good, you can put your mind in baseball and just concentrate on the things you know how to do. I tell those kids that's only the No. 1 step. You have to go through a lot now."
Gonzalez kicked off his career with Missoula in the Pioneer League where he had to learn to grow up quickly.
"From being a kid at home, the next thing you know, you're in a country that speaks a totally different language, and you have to find your own way, where you're going to live, how you're going to get to the ballpark, a lot of responsibilities when you're only 16, 17 years old," the two-time National League All-Star said. "That happened to me, and I think it can be the worst and it can be the best thing to happen to you because you can grow so fast. You can be independent. You can be a grown man.
"You have a lot more responsibilities, and it's nice for a baseball player because obviously if you want to have a future in this game, the No. 1 thing is you have to be organized. You have to be responsible. You have to be a good teammate and a good player."
Though he was 3,500 miles from home at the dawn of his career, Gonzalez didn't spend time letting the distance or the challenges of getting acclimated to the Minors wear on him.
"I think what helped me a lot was I was enjoying every single moment," he said. "People might think, 'I can't imagine how difficult it is when you're playing in Montana and you don't speak the same language and you're only 16 and don't know anything about life.' But it helped me a lot in that way because everything was positive for me. The way I looked at it was: I'm a professional baseball player. I'm living my dream. I'm trying to reach my goals. Even if I don't do well, I'm still learning. I always have an opportunity to play the next day. I was playing against some really good players, like [Reds first baseman] Joey Votto was there. Now we talk about, 'Hey, remember when we were in Missoula back in 2003?' These are great memories, you know?"
For a 16-year-old Venezuelan prospect, the transition to the Dominican Republic should theoretically be easier than one like Gonzalez's due to the absence of a language barrier, but it doesn't come with any less pressure.
"I just try to remind those guys how important it is," Gonzalez said. "It's not just important for us. We have a lot of people back home watching what we do and supporting us. Baseball in Venezuela is like soccer in Brazil. People care so much about that, especially the WBC. If you don't show your ability, if you're not 100 percent, people are going to let you know.
"It's a big responsibility for us because we not only represent our organization or our families, we represent a country that's always watching us. They really take care of you when you get things done, and they treat you like a hero."
Despite Major League teams' hesitancy to set up shop in Venezuela, the country's economic situation may actually be driving more of its young talent to pursue baseball further. With poverty rates high and instability constant, a payday from a professional contract is appealing to players who would've otherwise sought out school or other careers in years past. Organizations like the Cubs are keeping that in mind.
"We have a really good international department with scouts that are in Venezuela, from Venezuela and know their way around," Madison said. "It's almost like now we've even increased the work that we do in Venezuela because other teams are pulling out and not spending as much time down there. Maybe that gives us a little bit of an advantage of getting to know the players a little bit better and digging through some of the guys who maybe would've gone to college in the past and now they're looking to sign. Staying with some of those guys that might change their mind later on, we might get a chance to get to know those guys a little bit better. "
While there won't be players taking the field in VSL Cubs uniforms this year, there will still be a heavy Cubs presence with Chicago keeping its academy open and a spot in the VWL's parallel league.
"I think the hope is that the VSL will start back up at some point once everything gets figured out in Venezuela and we would be able to move back down there," Madison said.
One of the world's richest sources of baseball stars will continue to be so. For Gonzalez and his countrymen, nothing has changed about the work it takes to get to the big leagues. Now it might just take one longer step to the DSL or GCL or beyond to get the next wave of Venezuelan prospects started on their professional journeys.
"I always tell every young guy that has the opportunity to be in big league camp, 'Enjoy the Minor Leagues because those years are never going to come back,'" Gonzalez said. "Every day, enjoy it as much as possible because tomorrow maybe you'll be in the big leagues.
"Trust me, at some point, you're going to look back and say, 'I had fun when I was playing in the Minor Leagues and I learned a lot. That's why I am the player that I am today.'"