Draft Notes: Austin, Pirates, Hultzen

The deadline for signing draft picks has passed, but there’s still lots of news about 2011 draftees. The latest: 

• Padres draftee Brett Austin turned down $1.5MM from San Diego to play for North Carolina State, according to Tom Krasovic of Inside the Padres (Twitter link). San Diego selected the catcher with the 54th overall pick in the draft.
• As Jim Callis of Baseball America shows, the Pirates, Nationals and Royals lead all MLB teams in bonus expenditures from 2007-11. Four AL East teams – everyone but the Yankees – are next on the list. 
• Callis also details this year's expenditures, with the Pirates, Nationals and Royals again leading the way. 
• 2011 draftees Gerrit Cole, Bubba Starling and Danny Hultzen obtained three of the top five bonuses in draft history, according to Callis.