The short version
- Major League Baseball suspended a prospect from the Dominican Republic following an investigation into allegations of significant age fraud.
- The scheme involved falsifying birth and medical documents, as well as creating a fake tombstone to support a false identity for the player.
- The Cleveland Guardians canceled their pre-agreement with the athlete after the league inquiry revealed he was older than reported.
Major League Baseball has suspended a promising infielder from the Dominican Republic after an internal investigation uncovered a sophisticated scheme designed to misrepresent his age. The player, who had been operating under the name David Severino, was found to be part of a plot that made him appear nearly two years younger than his actual age. This deception allowed him to qualify for a lucrative pre-agreement with the Cleveland Guardians, which has now been nullified by the league.
According to reports, the fraud involved extensive manipulation of official documents. The player’s handler allegedly falsified school records, medical files, and both birth and death certificates. In one particularly striking detail, the scheme included the creation of a fake gravesite in the Dominican Republic. This physical prop was intended to corroborate the false narrative that the player’s older identity had died years earlier, thereby cementing his new, younger persona.
The athlete in question is actually named Daury David Severino Damaso and is 16 years old. Under the fabricated identity of David Severino, he was presented as being only 13 or 14 years old at the time negotiations began. The Cleveland Guardians agreed to a $2.8 million pre-deal in December, operating under the belief that the player would turn 17 and become eligible to sign officially in 2029. The league’s discovery of his true age rendered this agreement invalid.
Francisco Nieves, identified as Severino’s trainer at the time, is accused of orchestrating the deception. Nieves reportedly created the false identity and generated the supporting documentation, including a death certificate claiming Daury had succumbed to a respiratory illness shortly after birth. By planting a tombstone at a local gravesite, Nieves provided tangible evidence for scouts and officials who might question the player’s background. This level of fabrication has been described by industry insiders as unprecedented in its complexity.
John Pereyra, a veteran trainer with over three decades of experience running an academy in Santiago, was involved in Severino’s development but claims he was unaware of the fraud until late in the process. Pereyra stated that he was initially told the player was 11 years old and paid $20,000 for his rights to Nieves. He trained Severino for two years leading up to the Guardians deal, noting that while he had some suspicions due to the late filing of birth certificates—a common occurrence in impoverished areas—he did not uncover the full extent of the deception.
Pereyra recounted conducting his own informal investigation when he heard about the supposed death of Severino’s younger brother. He visited the gravesite mentioned in the records, which initially alleviated his concerns. It was only in May, after receiving a message from Nieves indicating that MLB was investigating the deal, that Pereyra realized the situation was fraudulent. The agreement with Cleveland subsequently fell apart as the league probe intensified.
The incident highlights the intense pressure and desperation faced by young athletes in economically disadvantaged regions of the Dominican Republic and Venezuela. Pereyra expressed sympathy for the player and his family, suggesting that the drive to escape poverty motivated their compliance with the handler’s instructions. He noted that while false documents are not unheard of, the scale of this particular scheme, involving staged graves and comprehensive identity fabrication, was shocking to those familiar with the industry.
It remains unclear what specific trigger prompted MLB to launch its investigation into Severino’s background. The league, the Cleveland Guardians, and Francisco Nieves have not provided public comments regarding the matter. The suspension serves as a stark reminder of the rigorous verification processes now employed by professional sports organizations to maintain integrity in player recruitment and contract negotiations.
Sources behind this briefing
Go to the original reporting
- The Guardian US↗MLB suspends Dominican prospect after age-fraud plot involving fake grave
