Academy pipeline: Gonzalez, 16, inks Sounders 2 pro deal

• by Paul Kennedy  @pkedit, Jul 18, 2017

The Seattle Sounders made Azriel Gonzalez,  who turned 16 in May, their youngest signing ever when he inked a pro contract with Seattle Sounders FC 2. He has already played five games since joining S2, another MLS second team that has been aggressively promoting academy players.

Listen: Ezra Hendrickson on Azriel Gonzalez.

Gonzalez, a native of Las Vegas, joined Seattle’s academy when he was 13 and attended the Sounders' first-team preseason in January. He scored 13 goals in 23 games for the Sounders' U-15/16s.

S2 pipeline: Sam Rogers, Shandon Hopeau and Lorenzo Ramos also signed S2 pro contracts, making the jump from Sounders FC Academy this season.

Of the 13 players who played for the Sounders in their 3-2 overtime loss to the LA Galaxy in the USSDA U-17/18 semifinals, eight have played for S2 in the USL in 2017: Milo Barton, Jamie Dimitroff, Paul Rothrock, Kei Tomozawa, Ethan Lotenero, Jackson Ragen, Hopeau and Rogers.

The top prospect in the Sounders' youth program might be 15-year-old Alfonso Ocampo Chavez, who moved from Merced, California. Ocampo Chaves, who plays for the U.S. U-15s, has made one S2 start.