How do the Detroit Tigers decide what international players to sign?
Tom Moore, their director of international operations, says he puts names of prospects on a board, spins around a few times, sticks a pin in the name of a random player and, voila!, a signing.
Of course, Moore is joking.
But the difficulty of discovering international gems can feel like a random process at times, with prospects signing as early as age 16. Teams rely heavily on their scouts to know the player, build a relationship with their trainer and evaluate the program they come from.