Phillies land 'pivotal' int'l signing, their first amateur from Japan

On Jan. 15, 17-year-old Francisco Renteria put pen to paper from Citizens Bank Park, officially joining the Phillies’ organization as their headlining signee of the 2026 international class. He’s expected to immediately rocket toward the top of their Top 30 Prospects list upon its release in early March. A native of Venezuela, he hails from a market -- Latin America -- that the organization has routinely established a strong foothold in over the years.

But their latest signing class has already been notable for other reasons as well.

Alexandre Moreti was a less-heralded signee, inking a modest $10,000 bonus. But the right-handed pitcher represents the first amateur from Japan that the franchise has signed, step one in their push to make a significant impact in the Pacific Rim.

“I think Moreti is such a pivotal sign for us in multiple ways,” said Blake Crosby, the club’s assistant director of international scouting. “Not only do we like the talent, but he's a bit of a pioneer for the Philadelphia Phillies because now anytime we go into a park [in Japan] where the Phillies logo is seen, kids are gonna know like, ‘Oh, hey, Moreti went that path. I know that team has interest in doing that.’”

A 6-foot-4 right-hander, Moreti, whose father is Italian-Brazilian and mother is Japanese-Brazilian, has long represented Brazil in international play. He recently flashed a fastball that touched the low 90s during U23 Baseball PanAm play back in October, where he turned in a pair of scoreless outings.

It’s never easy to point to a $10,000 signee on the international market and say that player has an elevated chance at making an impact at the Major League level, but there is a precedent coming from the Phillies’ pitching development group. They signed a then-16-year-old Ranger Suárez for just $25,000 out of Venezuela in April 2012, watching him blossom into an All-Star across an eight-year tenure. Seranthony Domínguez was also a $25,000 international signee before posting a 10.3 K/9 rate as a reliable bullpen arm across six seasons. Héctor Neris got just $17,000 out of the D.R. and went on to save 84 games for Philadelphia, the eighth-most in franchise history.

Moreti’s signing wouldn’t have been possible without Tora Otsuka, the Phillies’ lead scout in Japan. The son of former big leaguer Akinori Otsuka, who enjoyed a strong four-year MLB run with the Padres and Rangers from 2004-07 after a decorated career in his native country, Tora has been the club’s point man on the ground for establishing the club as a legitimate commodity for players. After Moreti wasn’t shy in making it known that he was interested in the path that got him to the big leagues quickest, it became a perfect match.

“We thought, ‘Hey, if we get this guy in our player development system, we have a real opportunity for this kid to take a jump,’” said Crosby. “It was just really good. Mutual parties coming together and just saying, ‘Hey, this is an opportunity he wants, and it's an opportunity that we want.’”

There’s no doubt it’s a unique path. By forgoing college in both Japan and the U.S., as well as the Nippon Professional Baseball League Draft, Moreti will begin his professional career in the Rookie-level Dominican Summer League come June. The 18-year-old -- who already speaks Portuguese -- has earned rave reviews from the club for his dedication off the field, including already beginning to learn Spanish ahead of his move to the D.R.

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Conventionally, players from Japan who have come stateside have done so after establishing their profile in their country’s professional ranks. But the past two years alone have given a glimpse into a new mode of operation: as the 2025 international signing period opened, Shotaro Morii, a dynamic two-way player, signed with the Athletics for a record $1.5 million signing bonus, the highest ever handed out to a Japanese amateur by an MLB club. Rintaro Sasaki, Japan’s all-time high school home run leader, enrolled at Stanford University, first getting some significant exposure in the MLB Draft League and Appy League. Right-hander Genei Sato, projected to have been a top selection in the NPB Draft, will instead enroll at Penn State with eyes on entering the 2027 MLB Draft.

“It's twofold,” said Crosby of the organization’s increased focus in Japan. “One, it gives us an opportunity to scout the high school players and be ready in case that there's players that do want to come to the States. And two, it builds us an early database so that when those players go to NPB, we've built history on those guys.

“It’s no different than [how] we would [scout] in the States. If you know the next [Dodgers right-hander Yoshinobu] Yamamoto, you go, ‘Hey, if we've got high school notes, video and things like that, that's a huge advantage.’ When he becomes a free agent or if he decides that he wants to come stateside, you've kind of already got that base.”