Baseball: Minor League talents Joe Perez and Blaine Prescott join Auckland Tuatara

Baseball NZ CEO Ryan Flynn. Photo / Photosport

The Auckland Tuatara's roster is shaping up nicely.

Having already confirmed a host of local and international talent, the Herald can confirm prospects from the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers have inked on the dotted line to join the team in their debut season.

Joe Perez, a third baseman with the Astros organisation, and Blaine Prescott, a second baseman and outfielder with the Rangers, will be with the team for the full season as they look to continue their rise toward Major League Baseball.

Perez, 19, was drafted in the second round of the 2017 MLB rookie draft. Playing as a pitcher and position player at high school, he went a little later in the draft than expected due to injury underwent Tommy John surgery, an elbow ligament reconstruction common for pitchers, last year which saw his stock in the draft drop slightly. In limited time with the Astros rookie ball affiliate, the young infielder hit for an impressive .364 average.

Prescott played under Auckland Tuatara manager Steve Mintz at the Down East Wood Ducks in single A ball as part of the Texas Rangers organisation, hitting with a .248 career average.

Mintz said the two were exciting signings for the team.

"Joe's got some massive power and can play third base very well," Mintz said.

"Blaine is a very, very fast young man and has some massive pop too for a little guy. He's small in stature but he carries a big stick."

The duo join Kiwis Max Brown, Beau Bishop, Scott Cone, Jimmy Boyce and Daniel Lamb-Hunt, and fellow imports Josh Collmenter, and Eric Jenkins on the roster.

The team will also carry 17 development players, who trialled for a role with the team at the weekend.

Initially looking for two players to take a spot on the Tuatara roster, Mintz decided all 17 would be taken on as development players and would play some sort of role with the squad through the season.

Baseball New Zealand director Brett O'Riley said based on the talent they saw at the trials, the side might not need as many imports as initial thought.

"We had a couple of guys throwing 90 miles per hour yesterday, so that's really encouraging.

"We're already a year ahead of where we thought we'd be."

Tuatara development players

Andrew Marck, Kris Richards, Takahiro Kaneka, Luke Hansen, Marko Lezaic, Yuuki Takahashi, James Hill, Sage Shaw-Tait, Dante Makea-Matakatea, Matt Boyce, Mitchell Finnie, Nao Fukuda, Correze Nepia, Elliot Johnstone, Duncan Izaaks, Keegan Swanepoel, Seth Gibson.