Indians To Sign Drew Pomeranz
The Indians agreed to sign fifth-overall selection Drew Pomeranz on a $2.65MM deal, according to Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain Dealer (Twitter links). The 6'5" left-hander turns 22 this fall. The Rangers drafted Pomeranz in the 12th round of the 2007, but he chose to attend Mississippi instead. Last year MLB recommended a $2.52MM bonus for the fifth-overall selection.
The Indians also signed second-rounder LeVon Washington and third-rounder Tony Wolters, according to Hoynes. ESPN.com's Keith Law says the Indians and Wolters agreed to a $1.35MM deal (Twitter link).
Click here for the complete list of 2010 first-rounders to sign.
Reds To Sign Yasmani Grandal
The Reds will sign first-round catcher Yasmani Grandal to a major league deal worth $2.99MM, according to MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo. Jon Heyman of SI.com also hears that Grandal will sign for $2.9MM (Twitter link). The University of Miami product becomes the first 2010 draftee to sign a major league deal and will receive a 40-man roster spot.
Grandal, still just 21, played on the 2009 USA Baseball national team. The Red Sox drafted him in the 27th round of the 2007 draft, but he did not sign.
Tigers Sign Chance Ruffin
The Tigers signed Chance Ruffin for $1.15MM, according to Mike Berman of News8Austin (on Twitter). MLB.com's Jason Beck confirms the report (Twitter link). The 21-year-old right-hander was a pitcher at Texas, where he started and relieved for the Longhorns. The recommended bonus for the 48th overall pick was $728K last year, so Ruffin appears to be getting an above-slot deal.
Here's our complete list of first-round picks to sign.
Rockies Sign Peter Tago
The Rockies signed prep right-hander Peter Tago, according to the MLB draft's Twitter page. Tago, selected 47th overall in the supplementary first round, gets a $983K bonus, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America. MLB recommends a $740K bonus for Tago's slot, so the Rockies are paying a little more than the commissioner's office would like. Baseball America says Tago is "a near perfect model of a prep right-hander with a huge upside: projectable frame, easy arm action, calm demeanor and electric stuff." The 18-year-old had committed to playing at UCLA.
As Troy Renck of the Denver Post writes, negotiations between the Rockies and first-round selection Kyle Parker will likely continue until the deadline. Colorado has until 11 CDT tonight to reach an agreement with Parker, who plays quarterback for Clemson.
Here's the complete list of first rounders to sign.
Giants To Sign Gary Brown For $1.45MM
8:10pm: Brown gets a $1.45MM bonus, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America (on Twitter).
3:46pm: The Giants agreed to sign first-round pick Gary Brown for about $1.3MM, according to Yahoo's Kendall Rogers (on Twitter). The Giants, who selected the 21-year-old outfielder 24th overall in this year's draft, appear to be paying him close to slot money. Last year, the Angels paid Randal Grichuk slot money ($1.242MM) after drafting him 24th overall. The A's selected Brown in the 12th round of the 2007 draft, but he went on to star at Cal State Fullerton instead of signing.
Now that the Giants have agreed to sign Brown, 15 first-round picks have yet to come to terms with the clubs that drafted them.
Angels Sign Kaleb Cowart
The Angels signed first-round pick Kaleb Cowart, tweets Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports by way of a team press release. BA's Jim Callis reports that he'll get $2.3MM, about $900K over slot. Cowart, a pitcher and third baseman drafted out of high school, was chosen 18th overall by the Angels. The Angels received the pick from the Mariners as compensation for the Chone Figgins signing.
With the Cowart agreement, 16 first-round picks remain unsigned.
Draft Signings: Hahn, Shipers, Cates, Cone
The deadline for signing draft picks is fast approaching, as teams have until tomorrow night at 11 CST to finalize deals with this year's draftees. Here are a few notable above-slot agreements, with any new updates added to the top of the list throughout the day:
- Sixth-round pick Jesse Hahn has signed with the Rays for $525K, reports Jim Callis of Baseball America. Hahn was projected as a first-rounder at one point, but Tommy John surgery hurt his value. Still, he easily exceeded MLB's recommended $150K maximum for players drafted after the fifth round.
- The Indians signed 23rd-round left-hander Tony Dischler for $255K, tweets Callis.
- The Mariners agreed to terms with 16th-round pick Jordan Shipers for a deal worth $800K, according to Callis. That bonus is the highest so far for any player draft later than the fourth round.
- Third-rounder Zach Cates reached an agreement with the Padres for a $765K bonus, the highest to date for a third-round selection. Callis reports that the right-hander more than doubled MLB's recommended bonus of approximately $380K for the draft slot.
- Derek Cone, the Dodgers' 31st-round pick, signed with the club for $150K, according to Callis (via Twitter).
- For a summary of which first-rounders and sandwich picks have signed so far, click here.
Draft Notes: Solis, Klein, Jenkins, Gumbs
The deadline for signing draft picks is just days away. Teams have until August 16th (next Monday) at 11 CST to sign their picks, and the agreements are starting to trickle in. Here are the details:
- Talks between the Nationals and second-round pick Sammy Solis are "amicable," and MLB.com's Bill Ladson hears from a source that a deal is close to being worked out.
- Baltimore has agreed to terms with third-rounder Dan Klein, tweets Baseball America's Jim Callis. Klein's bonus is worth just under $500K, or as Callis describes it, "second-round money."
- The Cardinals officially announced their contract with Tyrell Jenkins, writes Matthew Leach of MLB.com. It was reported earlier this week that Jenkins and the Cards had agreed to terms that included an above-slot bonus price for the 50th overall pick.
- The Yankees signed second-rounder Angelo Gumbs for $750K, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America. The outfielder gets the largest bonus for any player drafted after the supplemental first round this year.
- Here's another above-slot deal for an outfielder: the Padres signed eighth-rounder Jose Dore for $450K, according to Callis.
- Not surprisingly, the Red Sox haven't had substantial talks with Scott Boras about signing Anthony Ranaudo, according to Alex Speier of WEEI.com. Ranaudo pitched well in the Cape Cod League this summer and maintains that he's ready to return to LSU.
- MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo gives the latest updates on unsigned first round picks. Mayo reports indications that the D'Backs have continued talking to Barret Loux, who failed his physical.
- Here's our list of top picks to sign.
Odds & Ends: Cardinals, Blue Jays, Morrow, Delgado
Some links to check out as Brandon Morrow just misses no-hitting the Rays…
- Jim Callis of Baseball America (via Twitter) doesn't like the chances of the Cards signing their 12th-round pick, outfielder Austin Wilson.
- Toronto's negotiations with first-round pick Deck McGuire will likely go down to the wire, writes MLB.com's Jordan Bastian.
- Morrow told FOX Sports' Jim Bowden (Twitter link) that he was happy to be traded to the Blue Jays this offseason because he knew he would be a starter and not a reliever.
- Baseball America's Jim Callis tweets that the Indians signed 13th-rounder Michael Goodnight for $315K. Goodnight has a fastball that reaches 94 mph and a plus slider.
- Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports tweets that the Tigers aren't pursuing the recently DFA'ed Jose Guillen.
- Carlos Delgado told Brian MacPherson of The Providence Journal that he and his agent spoke to the White Sox, Rockies, and Mariners before deciding to sign with the Red Sox. In a separate article, WEEI's DJ Bean writes that Delgado is more focused on winning a championship than anything else.
- Joel Sherman of The New York Post explains how the Yankees have to develop their own bench players because no free agents want to sign with them only to sit on the bench most of the time.
- Jason Churchill and Keith Law of ESPN take a look at some teams that need to land a few of their tough-to-sign draft picks before the August 16th deadline (Insider req'd).
- Karen Price of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review writes about the newest Pirates and the difficult transition they've had to make following the trade deadline.
- Meanwhile, the Chris Snyder pick up does not make a Ryan Doumit trade inevitable, says Dejan Kovacevic of The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
- Joe Cowley of The Chicago Sun-Times says that Ozzie Guillen and Paul Konerko are happy with the moves the White Sox did not make.
- The Cardinals are trying to find a long-term fix at the hot corner, writes Joe Strauss of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch. David Freese will be out indefinitely after suffering a setback as he rehabbed from an ankle injury.
Odds & Ends: Reds, Giants, Harper, Dodgers, Prior
Links for Saturday, as J.P. Arencibia homers on the first pitch he sees in the majors….
- John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer tweets that he has not seen a year in which the Reds have faced so many difficult roster decisions in the last decade.
- Jim Callis of Baseball America (via Twitter) expects the Giants to eventually sign their first-round pick, center fielder Gary Brown.
- Barry Shlachter of the Dallas Morning News examines whether the group headed by Chuck Greenberg and Nolan Ryan overpaid for the Rangers.
- Jim Callis of Baseball America passes on news of a pair of draft picks signing for over-slot deals: The Blue Jays signed their second-round pick, while the Pirates locked up their fourth-rounder.
- Tigers owner Mike Ilitch acknowledged to Bob Wojnowski of the Detroit News that he'd signed off on some bad contracts in the past, but said that won't stop him from spending money in the future.
- MLB.com's Bill Ladson hears that negotiations between the Nationals and Bryce Harper could "heat up" by Tuesday. The first overall pick in this year's draft enrolled for classes at the College of Southern Nevada, but that doesn't mean he won't end up signing with the Nats.
- The Dodgers still seem to be buyers, leading Steve Dilbeck of the Los Angeles Times to wonder if they put a waiver claim on Adam Dunn.
- Although he's pitching for the Orange County Flyers now, Mark Prior hopes to make his way back to the bigs, according to MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger.