I seem to be a specialist in raising unpopular issues, judging by AN-ers reactions. On the other hand, I seem to have a long record of introducing innovation, or taking unpopular stances, justified later on by events. In particular, I have been raising on AN the issue of going for Venezuelan prospects, in preference to those from the Dominican Republic. The main arguments in favor are lower costs and greater player pride - something that is vital in clutch situations and playoffs/WS. But, apparently, there is also a factor of easier adaptation to MLB standards, according to ESPN.

On this occasion, I want to bring up to everybody's attention not my own arguments, but an article written by an ESPN writer some six months back, using our will known Carlos Gonzales as a descriptive example. The link is <http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/page/arangure-120707/carlos-gonzalez-traces-success-colorado-rockies-back-venezuelan-youth-baseball>. (Sorry if the way I entered that link, as text, does not call up the site automatically - don't know how to get around that).

Enjoy it!