White Sox Nearing Deal With First-Rounder Anderson
The White Sox and first-round pick Tim Anderson are on the verge of finalizing a deal, Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune reports. Anderson, a shortstop from East Central Community College in Dectaur, Miss. is flying to Chicago take a physical, according to Gonzales.
Anderson, who is advised by Reynolds Sports Management, ranked 25th among draft prospects according to MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo. Baseball America ranked him as the draft's No. 26 prospect, while ESPN's Keith Law ranked him 37th.
Mayo writes that Anderson's speed is his best asset, noting that he should be a base-stealing threat with occasional power to his pull side. All three evaluations feel he has a chance to stick at short, though BA notes that average arm strength could force him to move.
The assigned pick value for the No. 17 overall selection is $2.164MM, according to Baseball America.
A’s Sign Competitive Balance Pick Pinder
8:50am: Pinder's bonus will be $750K, according to BA's Jim Callis (Twitter link), meaning the A's were able to ink Pinder for about $33K under slot.
8:29am: The A's have signed No. 71 overall pick Chad Pinder, according to Pinder's Twitter account. Financial details of his signing bonus have yet to be reported, but the assigned pick value of that slot is $782,900, according to Baseball America. Pinder is advised by Icon Sports Management.
Pinder, a third baseman out of Virginia Tech, was selected with the competitive balance lottery pick that the Athletics were awarded in last summer's lottery. The 21-year-old ranked as the 49th-best prospect in the draft according to MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo. He ranked 54th on BA's Top 500 and placed 80th on the Top 100 list of ESPN's Keith Law (Insider subscription required).
Mayo praised Pinder's gap power and ability to use the whole field at the plate, also calling him a "solid and reliable defender" at third base. BA and Law agree, though BA notes that some scouts feel he could also provide average defense at second base, where his bat profiles better.
Pinder is the second of the A's top three picks to sign, as Oakland inked first-rounder Billy McKinney for a $1.8MM bonus yesterday.
Cubs Acquire Henry Rodriguez
The Nationals announced that they have traded Henry Rodriguez to the Cubs in exchange for fellow right-hander Ian Dickson. The Nats designated Rodriguez for assignment last week in order to make room on the roster for Anthony Rendon.
Rodriguez, 26, has a 4.23 ERA with 9.3 K/9 and 6.1 BB/9 across parts of five big league seasons with the A's and Nats. He pitched 18 innings in relief for Washington this season, posting a 4.00 ERA with eleven strikeouts and 16 walks. While he has yet to find sustained success in the big leagues, Rodriguez has impressed with a 100 mph fastball in recent outings.
Dickson, 22, was taken in the 35th round of the 2011 draft by the Cubs. The youngster has a 6.88 ERA with 8.2 K/9 and 3.8 BB/9 in three starts and eight relief appearances for Chicago's Single-A affiliate this year.
Quick Hits: Sizemore, Mets, Zunino
While major league players implicated in the Biogenesis scandal have yet to provide substantive information to MLB, multiple minor leaguers have discussed their transactions with Anthony Bosch's clinic in detail, sources with knowledge of the interviews told Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports. "Players aren't going to say anything – until they know what [Bosch] said," one source with knowledge of the players' plan said. "There's nothing to be gained from talking now. As long as they don't say anything, they're not lying." Here's more from around baseball..
- Free agent Grady Sizemore is still "a ways away from getting on the field," a source tells Darren Wolfson of 1500 ESPN (on Twitter). We heard last week that there's a "strong belief" that the Twins will have interest in the outfielder when he's ready to return to action.
- Mets GM Sandy Alderson believes that the club will have a $90-100MM payroll in 2014, writes Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Alderson estimates that they have roughly $55MM in commitments for next season, which should give them flexibility over the winter.
- Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik did his best to downplay the hype surrounding Mike Zunino when he spoke with reporters earlier today, writes Ryan Divish of The News Tribune.
Draft Notes: Judge, Yankees, Bryant, Dodgers
Here’s a look at today’s draft news..
- Yankees first-round pick Aaron Judge says that he’s “real confident” that he’ll be signing soon with the Bombers, tweets Bryan Hoch of MLB.com. The Fresno State outfielder is known for jaw-dropping batting practice displays according to Baseball America and got to show off a bit as he took BP with the club today. Judge was one of three late first-round picks for the Yankees along with Eric Jagielo and Ian Clarkin.
- Jim Callis of Baseball America only sees two draftees this year becoming the top prospect in their respective organizations. Third baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant had the best power in this year’s draft and even though it’s an extremely close call, Callis ranks him ahead of shortstop Javier Baez and outfielders Albert Almora and Jorge Soler in the Cubs system. He also puts righthander Jonathan Gray over outfielder David Dahl in the Rockies system.
- The Dodgers‘ prospects are making an impact in the big leagues and there are even more on the way, writes MLB.com’s Austin Laymance.
Draft Signings: Athletics, Angels, Rangers
Over the next month, MLBTR will be keeping track of as many significant draft signings as possible. Here's your Tuesday rundown of notable draft bonuses (all slot information courtesy of Baseball America's assigned pick value list)…
- The A's inked 25 of their picks today, including third-round pick Chris Kohler, according to Callis (Twitterlinks). The high school left hander got a $486K bonus from Oakland.
- The Angels signed sixth-rounder Harrison Cooney for a little under $223K, according to BA's Jim Callis (on Twitter). The Florida Gulf Coast right-hander's salary is exactly in line with the slot recommendation for the No. 187 pick.
- The Rangers have officially signed ninth-round pick Jose Samayoa, MLBTR has learned. The right-hander is one of three Lee University pitchers drafted inside of the first eleven rounds.
- Baseball America's Jim Callis reports (on Twitter) that the Braves have signed sixth-round pick Stephen Janas. The Kennesaw State right-hander recovered from Tommy John surgery successfully this season and features a sinker clocked in the high 80s. Janas signed for the exact slot value of the 193rd pick — $210,200.
- The Mariners have signed 11th-rounder Zack Littell for a bonus of exactly $100K, tweets Callis. Littell is a high school righty out of North Carolina who's touched 92 mph with his heater and can throw his curve for strikes, according to Callis. He was committed to Appalachian State prior to signing. Littell's $100K bonus is the most teams are allowed to spend on players in rounds 11-40 without that money counting against their allotted bonus pool for the Top 10 rounds.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Royals Sign Second Rounder Cody Reed
7:27pm: Reed's deal is worth $1.198MM, which matches the exact slot value for the No. 46 pick, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America (via Twitter).
6:41pm: The Royals announced that they have signed their second round pick Cody Reed. Kansas City has now inked 18 of its 41 selections from the draft.
Reed, a 6-foot-5, 220-pound southpaw, set a new single-season school record with 96 strikeouts at Northwest Mississippi Community College in 73.1 innings. At one point during the season, Reed struck out 57 batters in five starts, including a career-high 15 in one outing.
The left-hander, who is being advised by B.B. Abbott of Jet Sports Management, is ranked 104th on Baseball America's top 500 and No. 31 on the top 100 list of ESPN's Keith Law. BA writes that Reed is a project whose stuff is rather raw but his arm strength is undeniable.
Mariners Designate Brandon Bantz For Assignment
The Mariners announced that they have designated catcher Brandon Bantz for assignment. The M's now have ten days to trade, release or outright Bantz’s contract to the minors.
Bantz, 26, was called up to the varsity squad on June 5th and started against the Yankees on June 8th. In parts of three seasons at the Double-A level, Bantz owns a 217/.305/.292 slash line.
Cardinals Sign Marco Gonzales
The Cardinals have signed first round pick Marco Gonzales, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America (via Twitter). 
The left-hander's bonus is worth $1.85MM, less than the recommended $2.056MM for the No. 19 pick on BA's list of assigned pick values.
The Gonzaga product is the most polished arm in the draft and boasts the best changeup of any pitcher in this year's class, in Callis' estimation. Gonzales, who is advised by Randy Rowley of Rowley Sports Management, is a polished hurler but doesn't have a terribly high ceiling, according to BA. There's no question that his changeup is his best attribute, and it grades as a 70 pitch on the 20-80 scale.
Gonzales ranked No. 28 on BA's top 500, 23rd on Keith Law of ESPN's top 100, and No. 14 on Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com's top 100. Remarkably, Gonzales is also the first left-handed pitcher to be selected by the Cardinals in the first round since Wake Forest southpaw Bret Wagner all the way back in 1994. St. Louis doubled up on lefties with their pair of first-round picks, selecting high school hurler Rob Kaminsky at No. 28 overall. Gonzales is the fourth first-round pick to sign so far.
Photo courtesy of Gonzaga Athletics/Torrey Vail.
Cubs Likely To Part With Ian Stewart
Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune tweets that the Cubs have suspended minor league third baseman Ian Stewart without pay following a Twitter rant in which the former first-round pick criticized the front office. As Sullivan writes, Stewart stated that the team "might as well release" him rather than let him "rot" in Triple-A, among other things.
Stewart has since apologized for the incident (All Twitter links), but Sullivan reports that the the team is likely to part ways with the 28-year-old.
Stewart entered today's game hitting .164/.279/.345 with four homers in 129 plate appearances, though he did go 1-for-3 with his fifth home run and a walk today. The California native was selected 10th overall out high school by the Rockies in 2003. He reached the Majors in 2007 and batted .246/.334/.454 with 53 homers in 349 games from 2008-10. He spent the next two seasons trying to play through a wrist injury that ultimately required surgery. He is owed $2MM this season after re-signing with the Cubs in December.