Yuyun Lusiyani
Baseball is not merely a sport in the Dominican Republic; it is a national obsession, a cultural cornerstone, and, for many, the sole beacon of hope out of entrenched poverty. The Caribbean nation has long served as an unparalleled talent pipeline to Major League Baseball (MLB) and its minor league affiliates, consistently sending a disproportionate number of players to North American professional baseball. Legends like Hall of Famers Pedro Martínez and Adrián Beltré embody the pinnacle of this dream, their success stories immortalized in vibrant murals adorning villages across the country, where playing fields and training academies proliferate. Yet, beneath this aspirational facade lies a deeply entrenched, often predatory system that, despite generating billions, systematically siphons off wealth from the very young athletes it purports to uplift.
For nearly half a century, the Dominican Republic has outpaced every country outside the United States in producing major league talent. With a population roughly equivalent to Ohio’s, the island nation saw an astounding 144 players reach the major leagues last year alone, accounting for approximately 10% of the entire league. This extraordinary output is no accident; it is the result of a high-volume "baseball factory" model, where MLB teams invest heavily, paying signing bonuses to an estimated 450 prospects annually. While the odds are daunting – fewer than 10% of these young players will ever step onto a major league field – the allure of these bonuses is immense. In a country where the average annual income hovers around $8,000, a signing bonus, even a modest one of $30,000, can be transformative, offering a life-changing sum for players and their impoverished families. However, a comprehensive investigation by ProPublica has exposed how Major League Baseball has, for decades, permitted a "corrosive system" to flourish, one that is rigged against vulnerable young players and in favor of opportunistic trainers and predatory moneylenders.
The Genesis of Exploitation: Unregulated Training Academies and "Buscones"
The pathway for young baseball players in the United States and Canada is structured through an annual draft system, designed to regulate entry into the major league system. In stark contrast, the Dominican Republic operates as a virtual free-for-all, where prospects are often treated as commodities, going to the highest bidder in a chaotic and largely unregulated market. This system began to take shape decades ago when MLB scouts first recognized the vast, untapped talent pool in the Dominican Republic. Initially, major league teams established rudimentary training academies to develop these young players. However, over time, a new class of intermediaries emerged: the "buscones." These individuals, originally relied upon by teams to identify local talent, soon realized they could establish their own independent academies. Today, the landscape is dotted with hundreds of such facilities, reportedly employing approximately 6,000 trainers, according to a national trade association.
These trainers operating the academies offer more than just coaching; they frequently provide room, board, and equipment to young players, many of whom come from destitute backgrounds. In return for these services, the trainers demand a significant share of any future signing bonus a player receives, typically ranging from 35% to 50%. While some bonuses can reach six or even seven figures, the majority are closer to $30,000. This arrangement, while seemingly providing a necessary service, places immense financial pressure on the players, who often forgo formal education in pursuit of their baseball dreams, leaving them with few alternatives if their athletic aspirations falter. ProPublica’s analysis of major league team payments to Dominican prospects reveals the staggering scale of this system: from 2012 through the beginning of 2026, teams paid a cumulative $1.042 billion in bonuses. Crucially, up to half of this colossal sum – an estimated $500 million – is almost immediately siphoned off by these trainers and, increasingly, by opportunistic lenders.
The Shadow of "Preacuerdos": Circumventing MLB Rules
A critical element enabling this exploitative ecosystem is the widespread practice of "preacuerdos," or unwritten early agreements. Major League Baseball’s official rules explicitly prohibit teams from making formal deals with players under the age of 16, a regulation intended to protect minors and ensure fair competition. However, teams have long circumvented this ban through these informal handshake deals, typically brokered by a player’s trainer. In a preacuerdo, a team tacitly commits to paying a specific amount to a player once they reach the legal signing age of 16.
The implications of this practice are profound and troubling. With players as young as 11 years old entering into such agreements, there can be a multi-year gap between the handshake deal and the actual receipt of the bonus. This extended period of waiting creates immense vulnerability for the young players and their families. It locks them into an informal commitment without legal recourse, while simultaneously making them targets for another layer of exploitation: high-interest moneylenders. The lack of transparency and official oversight in these early agreements undermines the very protections MLB claims to uphold for its international prospects.
The Predatory World of "Prestamistas": High-Interest Loans and Debt Traps
The existence of preacuerdos and the promise of future payouts have inadvertently fostered a thriving, albeit predatory, cottage industry of "prestamistas," or moneylenders. These lenders aggressively target players’ families, persuading them to sign away substantial portions of their impending bonuses in exchange for immediate cash loans. The interest rates charged by these prestamistas are often exorbitant, reaching triple digits, effectively trapping families in cycles of debt long before a player’s professional career even begins.
The legal landscape in the Dominican Republic further exacerbates this problem. Twenty-four years ago, the country repealed its usury laws, which traditionally limit the maximum interest rates that can be charged on loans. This legislative void has created a fertile ground for unregulated lending, allowing prestamistas to operate with impunity. They openly advertise their services, even using platforms like WhatsApp to target "baseball players who have agreements," showcasing the brazen nature of their operations. For families living in extreme poverty, the immediate relief offered by a loan, however ruinous its long-term terms, can seem like the only viable option, forcing them to mortgage their children’s future earnings at devastating costs.
Case Study: Belfi Rivera – A Dream Forfeited to Debt
The tragic story of Belfi Rivera serves as a stark illustration of how this system devastates individual players. At just 14 years old, Rivera entered into a handshake deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks, which promised him a $1.8 million bonus upon turning 16. The Diamondbacks declined to comment on the matter. However, despite the substantial sum, Rivera ultimately saw very little of his anticipated earnings. His trainer, who had facilitated the deal, claimed a hefty commission of $630,000. An even larger sum, over $950,000, was absorbed by Santo Caraballo, a prominent lender who had no role in Rivera’s athletic development but was involved in a business partnership with Hall of Famer David Ortiz.
Rivera’s experience is a chilling example of how the "baseball factory" can enrich a network of intermediaries while leaving the young talent with a mere fraction of their earned value. After the trainer’s commission and the lender’s cut, Rivera was left with a paltry sum from his multi-million dollar bonus, fundamentally altering the trajectory of his and his family’s financial future. This scenario highlights the urgent need for greater transparency, stronger legal protections for minors, and rigorous enforcement of existing regulations.
Santo Caraballo: From Tragic Accident to Lending Empire
Santo Caraballo’s ascent in the prestamista sphere is particularly noteworthy, especially given his prior involvement in a high-profile, tragic incident. In 2020, rising MLB prospect Oneil Cruz, then a player in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ minor league system, was involved in a deadly car crash, where his Jeep collided with a motorcycle, resulting in three fatalities. Prosecutors initially suggested Cruz had been drinking, and he faced a potential three-year prison sentence. According to numerous interviews and court records obtained by ProPublica, it was Caraballo who was brought in by Cruz’s parents to negotiate payments to the victims’ families. In exchange for these settlements, the families signed agreements withdrawing all claims against Cruz, who is now the starting center fielder for the Pirates. The criminal case against Cruz, who denied any wrongdoing, was subsequently dismissed. ProPublica’s repeated attempts to reach Caraballo for comment on his role in this matter went unanswered. Cruz declined an interview request, and his lawyer, Amauris Vásquez Disla, emphasized the court’s "legally binding decision" to dismiss the case, calling the accident "a profound tragedy for all parties involved." A spokesperson for the Pittsburgh Pirates stated that the team and Cruz "addressed this matter more than six years ago based on the information available and the outcome of the legal proceedings."
By 2021, Caraballo’s influence had expanded, evidenced by his documented business partnership with David Ortiz, one of the Dominican Republic’s most celebrated baseball stars. Records indicate both men were listed on corporation documents for "Big Papi Sports Group," a Florida-based company that was dissolved the following year. While the specific activities of this company remain unclear, their financial and personal ties persisted. Ortiz confirmed to ProPublica that he had invested "millions of dollars" into Caraballo’s baseball business, though he claimed his investments were limited to loans to trainers, not directly to young players. Despite Ortiz’s later assertions of distancing himself from Caraballo, the lender was observed sitting with Ortiz’s family at his 2022 Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Furthermore, a video from September 2025 captured Ortiz and Caraballo traveling to a Bad Bunny concert in Puerto Rico on a private jet, drinking and dancing, contradicting Ortiz’s earlier claims of ending their personal relationship "a year and a half to two years ago" due to Caraballo’s "inappropriate conduct." Caraballo, in a brief exchange with ProPublica, downplayed the profitability of his lending business, citing the inherent risk if a player doesn’t get signed. He did not respond to subsequent attempts for comment.
David Ortiz and the International Draft Controversy: A Conflict of Interest?
David Ortiz’s association with Santo Caraballo extends beyond personal and financial ties; it casts a significant shadow over his vocal opposition to a proposed international draft for baseball prospects. For more than a decade, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred has championed the idea of an international draft for Latin American players, arguing it is the "best solution" to curb the problematic preacuerdo system. Manfred and other proponents contend that a draft would eliminate early agreements by formalizing the signing process, assigning players to teams, and creating a more transparent, regulated environment.
Conversely, the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) has consistently opposed an international draft. The union argues that such a system would restrict a prospect’s fundamental right to choose their employer and eliminate the competitive bidding wars that currently drive up signing bonuses for top talents. The union acknowledges the inherent problems within the Dominican system of early deals but attributes these issues to MLB’s failure to adequately enforce its own existing rules, rather than a fundamental flaw in the free-market approach.
The debate reached a critical juncture during contract negotiations in 2022, with the international draft becoming a major sticking point between the league and the union. It was at this crucial moment that David Ortiz intervened. According to individuals on both sides of the discussions, Ortiz sent a potent voice message to Dominican players and trainers, declaring a "red alert" against the proposed draft. In an audio copy of the message obtained by ProPublica, Ortiz passionately warned, "If we allow the draft to happen here in the Dominican Republic, even your great-great-grandchildren, and everyone else’s, will be affected by it. If we let them push that thing through here, we’ll be in deep trouble." He even shared the phone number of Tony Clark, the union’s executive director, urging listeners to contact him and express their opposition.
Crucially, what Ortiz failed to disclose in his impassioned plea was his own financial interest in preserving the status quo – specifically, his investment in Caraballo’s lending business, which directly profits from the existing system of large signing bonuses and preacuerdos. When directly questioned by ProPublica about whether his opposition to the draft was influenced by his partnership with Caraballo, Ortiz did not respond and abruptly ended the call. In a subsequent statement issued through his lawyer, Ortiz maintained that his position on the international draft "was never motivated by personal interests," asserting instead that it "was based on my views regarding the development of Dominican players and the impact I believed such a system would have on baseball in our country." This statement, however, stands in stark contrast to the documented financial ties that benefit directly from the system he so vehemently defended.
Major League Baseball’s Complicity and the Path Forward
Major League Baseball wields immense economic and political power within the Dominican Republic, making its inaction all the more glaring. Beyond its consistent, albeit unsuccessful, push for an international draft, the league has done little to fundamentally dismantle or reform the deeply problematic early agreement system. Critics point to MLB’s failure to publicly warn or penalize any team for engaging in preacuerdos, effectively signaling a tacit approval of the practice. Furthermore, the league’s attempts to educate players and their families about the dangers of predatory moneylenders have largely proven ineffectual against the backdrop of systemic poverty and aggressive lending practices. A spokesperson for MLB declined to comment on ProPublica’s findings, referring only to past statements by league officials calling for an overhaul of the Dominican system.
Piñao Ortiz, who served as the Dominican commissioner of baseball from 1996 to 2000, encapsulated the sentiment of many critics, stating, "Major League Baseball knows how dirty the business is here, but it’s not doing anything to stop it." This indictment highlights a profound moral and ethical dilemma for MLB: an organization that profits immensely from the Dominican talent pipeline appears unwilling to take decisive action to protect the very individuals who fuel its success.
The broader implications of this corrosive system are far-reaching. It perpetuates a cycle of exploitation, leaving many young Dominicans financially vulnerable even if they achieve the coveted professional contract. It undermines the integrity of the sport’s developmental pathways and raises serious questions about player welfare and equitable opportunity. Reforming this deeply entrenched system will require a concerted effort from all stakeholders: MLB, the MLBPA, the Dominican government, and international bodies. Solutions must go beyond simply advocating for an international draft, encompassing stricter regulation of trainers and academies, robust legal protections for minors, comprehensive financial literacy programs for players and their families, and aggressive enforcement against predatory lending practices. Only then can the Dominican baseball dream truly become a pathway to prosperity, rather than a conduit for exploitation.
Joko Widodo
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