MLB rumors: Braves long pursuit hits paydirt, Bellinger dark horse, Red Sox payroll

Braves played long game with newly-acquired prospect

The Atlanta Braves, and specifically, team general manager Alex Anthopoulos, have hinged their reputation on identifying talent early and securing them to affordable, long-term deals before the market has a chance to catch up and balloon the pricing. It has allowed the Braves to create dominant teams in a remarkably affordable way.

So it shouldn't have been a huge surprise to see them make a big-wave move when the international signing period opened, as they doled out a team-record $5 million bonus to Venezuelan 17-year-old shortstop Jose Perdomo.

The philosophy is still the same: Get talent in early, win them over with the organization and culture, and don't let them leave.

Remarkably, the Braves were scouting Perdomo since he was 12 years old. And one of the things that earned him favor with Perdomo, and other Venezuelan players in the international scouting realm, is superstar Ronald Acuña Jr.

"We've had an edge with Venezuelans because of that Acuña effect," the team's Latin American scout Jonathan Cruz recently said of the scouting strategy, in response to the fact that Perdomo has eyed the jersey No. 13, the one Acuña currently wears.

If you're an Atlanta fan, you have to love that. The current stars and makeup of the team are directly paying dividends in the up-and-comings ranks, allowing the team to continue strengthening its system. There is a clear harmony between the present and the future, and they're being strategized together.

It's been a long time coming for this particular prospect, but the Braves got it done.