During the 2019 international signing period, the Mariners inked a pair of prospects out of the Mejia Top 10 Baseball Academy, a well-regarded training academy nestled in among the various team complexes in Boca Chica, and only about a mile from the Mariners’ complex as the crow flies. At the time, most of the attention was focused on outfielder Carlos Jimenez (pictured below, right), who received the fourth-highest bonus in the class.
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24496797/Screen_Shot_2023_03_11_at_9.22.11_AM.png)
The player on the left is Jimenez’s academy-mate and now his professional organization-mate, shortstop Axel Sánchez, who received a smaller bonus and subsequently less attention from prospect writers at time of signing.