SF Giants announce 2026 international free agency class, headlined by top prospect

On Thursday, the SF Giants announced their 2026 international free agency class. This group consisted of three prospects, headlined by top middle infielder Luis Hernández out of Venezuela.

SF Giants announce 2026 international free agency class, headlined by top prospect

Francys Romero of Beisbolfr.com reports Hernández earned a $5 million signing bonus. That represents the second-largest investment made by the organization through this channel. The largest signing bonus was handed out to Lucius Fox out of the Bahamas in 2015.

Hernández was viewed as the top prospect in this year's class. MLB Pipeline was among the prospect outlets to rank him as the No. 1 prospect.

Giants director of international scouting Joe Salermo was excited about this year's class and highlighted what stands out about Hernández:

"We’re excited about what this group of players brings to our organization. Luis [Hernández] stood out to us for his ability, character and work ethic. We’re proud to welcome him and this entire class as they begin their professional journeys with us."

Joe Salermo on Luis Hernández

The Giants had long been connected to Hernández, but Thursday is when the period opened up and the signing could be finalized. It is not a done deal until the ink dries on the paper.

Every year, a team loses or gains a prospect that had been connected to another organization. This happens for a few reasons, like an unexpected entrant into that channel, such as Roki Sasaki in 2025,
leads to a downstream effect.

The signing makes the second straight year in which the Giants landed one of the top prospects through this channel. Josuar Gonzalez was signed out of the Dominican Republic last year and has quickly emerged as one of the top prospects in baseball.

There is an interesting debate taking place as to where Hernández might start the 2026 season. In nearly every instance, young prospects who come through this channel begin their professional careers in the Dominican Summer League (DSL).

However, Joe Salermo told Justice delos Santos of the Mercurcy News that he hopes Hernández goes the non-traditional route, meaning skipping the DSL and coming stateside. That would be an extremely rare placement, but it highlights how far along the Giants believe his development is.

The Giants also signed pitcher Alexis Gallego out of Mexico and outfielder Angelo Ugueto out of Venezuela. That has one of the lowest bonus pools in this cycle at $5.4 million, and likely allocated nearly that entire amount.