Reds give Dominican lefty Constante $730K, sign Galarraga to minor league deal

Last time I saw Armando Galarraga was at the Rally to Restore Sanity. He may never revive his career as a major league starting pitcher, but his legacy was secured after the graceful way he handled the infamous perfect game deferred.

After finishing fourth in Rookie of the Year voting in 2008 and coming within an out from being 19th pitcher to throw a perfect game in the modern era, Galarraga has struggled mightily with control, bouncing between the minors, majors and the DFA list. He's signed to a minor league deal, but there's no word on a spring training invite.

Meanwhile, the Reds handed out a cool $730,000 bonus to 19-year-old Dominican lefty Jacob Constante. As Baseball America reports, it's the third-highest bonus in the majors during the current signing period. BA's Ben Badler wrote him up this way:

Constante, who turns 19 in March, is 6-foot-3, 215 pounds and threw 92-94 mph with good life on his fastball at the IPL event. He showed solid mechanics for his age and flashed a potentially above-average slider at 80-83 mph. He also threw a below-average 83-84 mph changeup that he had trouble keeping out of the dirt.

As Cy mentioned in the other thread, it's a little curious he's still unsigned at 19. With baseball academies on every corner in the DR, you might assume that a pitcher with those vitals and a live arm would already by scooped up - especially a lefty.

As another DR pitcher with a "C" last name, facile comparisons to Cueto (and Corcino) might not be far away. But Constante has at least 4 inches on both of them. And he throws lefty. With a fastball touching mid-90s, that's more than enough to be excited about.. Even if the Reds missed something everyone else didn't.