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2014 Amateur Draft

Yankees Sign Jacob Lindgren

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The Yankees have signed second-round pick Jacob Lindgren, Chad Jennings of LoHud.com tweets. This morning, George A. King III of the New York Post wrote that Lindgren’s signing was expected, and that he would receive the bonus pool amount, which is around $1.02MM for the No. 55 overall pick.

Baseball America ranked Lindgren the No. 50 prospect in the draft, and MLB.com ranked him No. 51. The Mississippi State junior throws a low-90s fastball and a very good slider, and appears likely to pitch as a reliever, although MLB.com notes the possibility that he could start.

Brewers Sign Kodi Medeiros

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The Brewers have signed No. 12 overall draft pick Kodi Medeiros, MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo tweets. Medeiros receives a signing bonus of $2.5MM, plus $240K to pay for college. The Hawaii high school lefty had a commitment to Pepperdine.

MLB.com ranked Medeiros the No. 29 prospect in the draft, and Baseball America placed him at No. 32. He wins praise for his fastball, which has good life and can reach into the mid-90s, and his slider, although he is somewhat small and pitches from a low arm slot, which has led some within the game to believe he may eventually be a reliever.

The bonus pool value of the No. 12 pick is around $2.81MM, so the Brewers save about $310K of room against their bonus pool. The Brewers went over their bonus pool allotments to sign Comp Round A selection Jacob Gatewood and second-rounder Monte Harrison, but between their savings on Medeiros and on later rounds (where they picked several college seniors), they are still within their bonus pool, as MLB.com’s Jim Callis notes.

West Notes: Giants, Cahill, Jackson

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The Giants didn’t have a particularly flashy offseason, but GM Brian Sabean’s moves have helped the team post the best record in baseball so far, writes ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick. Hunter Pence, signed to a five-year deal near the end of last season, has hit .296/.368/.464 so far, and Michael Morse, who Sabean signed to a one-year deal, has also been a key part of the Giants’ offense. Tim Hudson, signed to a two-year deal, has posted a 1.81 ERA. Here are more notes from the National League.

  • Two and a half years later, the Diamondbacks’ trade for Trevor Cahill looks like a poor one, and AZCentral.com’s Nick Piecoro investigates what went wrong. One problem, Piecoro says, is that Cahill’s mechanics are inconsistent, which means he sometimes has trouble throwing strikes. The Diamondbacks demoted Cahill to Class A+ Visalia this week after he posted a 5.66 ERA with 9.6 K/9 and 5.4 BB/9 in 41 1/3 innings this season. Jarrod Parker, the key piece the Diamondbacks traded to the Athletics for Cahill, recently had Tommy John surgery, but Piecoro points out that at least Parker isn’t signed to a long-term contract. Cahill is guaranteed $12MM next season.
  • The parameters of Alex Jackson’s upcoming negotiations with the Mariners are now relatively clear, Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune writes. Jackson, the sixth overall pick, has a bonus pool allotment of around $3.58MM. The Mariners, meanwhile, have about $3.89MM remaining in their bonus pool.  They can spend up to around $4.22MM before they’re penalized with the loss of future draft picks. Jackson is advised by Scott Boras.

Marlins Sign Justin Twine

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The Marlins have signed second-round pick Justin Twine for the bonus pool value of $1.316MM, Jon Heyman of CBS Sports tweets. Miami selected Twine, a Texas high school shortstop (and also an outstanding high school running back), with the No. 43 overall pick. He was committed to TCU.

Baseball America ranked Twine the No. 138 prospect in the draft, while MLB.com placed him at No. 161. They note he has excellent speed (which is no surprise, given his background), but scouts aren’t sold on his hitting ability, particularly his ability to hit secondary pitches. He also may eventually have to move to center field.

The Marlins also recently reportedly agreed to a $6MM bonus with first-round pick Tyler Kolek, saving $821K against their bonus pool. They also saved about $400K on Comp Round A pick Blake Anderson and about $137K on third-rounder Brian Anderson. As MLB.com’s Jim Callis pointed out earlier today (on Twitter), that meant the Marlins had saved about $1.36MM against their bonus pool. The Marlins gave back $250K of that amount as part of a $350K bonus for 11th-round pick Nick White, but that still left about $1.11MM in savings. Callis guessed that Twine might be the beneficiary of some of that money, but it appears that isn’t the case.

Draft Signings: Cederoth, Gonzalez, Abbott

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Here are today’s notable mid- to late-round draft signings from around the league, with all slot info coming courtesy of Baseball America…

  • The Twins have reached agreement with third-rounder Michael Cederoth on an at-slot, $703.9K bonus, reports John Manuel of Baseball America (via Twitter). Though he profiles as a bullpen arm, Cederoth landed at 45th on BA’s list of the top 500 prospects and 59th on the rankings of MLB.com. Minnesota will surely hope to install him in its major league pen sooner rather than later.
  • Orioles third-round pick Brian Gonzalez, whose signing was announced yesterday, will get a $700K bonus, tweets Jim Callis of MLB.com. That is $105.8K higher than the allocation for the 90th overall choice.
  • The Angels have gone above slot to sign their x-round choice, Alex Abbott, tweets Manuel. He gets a $375K bonus, a decent bump over the 179th slot’s $244.7K assigned value.

Earlier Updates

  • The Twins and fourth-rounder Sam Clay have agreed to a $400K bonus that will save Minnesota about $76K, reports Jim Callis of MLB.com (on Twitter). Clay, a Georgia Tech left-hander, has run his fastball up to 95 mph at times and shows a hard slider when at his best, Callis adds.
  • Callis reports (Twitter links) that the Mets have signed third-rounder Eudor Garcia for $305K — a savings of nearly $150K considering his slot value of $453,600. BA ranked the JuCo third baseman 160th on its Top 500. Overall, Callis notes, the team saved $517K on rounds 3-10, which allowed them to sign 13th-rounder Erik Manoah for $300K.
  • Callis also tweets that the Rockies and third-rounder Sam Howard have agreed to the full slot value of $672,100. The left-hander out of Georgia Southern has a three-pitch mix and was ranked 122nd by BA and 158th by MLB.com
  • Fourth-round pick Jeff Brigham has agreed to terms with the Dodgers, reports Callis (via Twitter). The Washington right-hander, whose sinking fastball has touched 96 mph, receives the full slot value of $396,300. BA ranked him 198th on their Top 500.
  • The Cardinals have agreed to sign fourth-rounder Austin Gomber for the full slot value of $374,100, reports BA’s John Manuel (on Twitter). Gomber, a lefty out of Florida Atlantic University, ranked 82nd on BA’s Top 500 list and 100th on MLB.com’s Top 200 prior to the draft.
  • Also note that Baseball America’s comprehensive Draft Database allows you to track the progress of your team’s signings and includes info on lower picks and smaller bonuses that aren’t noted here at MLBTR (players listed in bold font on the BA database have signed, and filters to search by round/team or exclude unsigned players are available on the right-hand sidebar).

Yankees To Sign Third-Rounder Austin DeCarr

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The Yankees have agreed to go significantly over slot to sign third-round pick Austin DeCarr, reports Jim Callis of MLB.com (Twitter link). DeCarr will take home a $1MM bonus, well above the $585.1K slot value for the 91st overall pick.

DeCarr is a prep righty from Connecticut who had been committed to Clemson. He did not make the top-100 list of ESPN.com’s Keith Law, but was rated at 68th by Baseball America and 70th by MLB.com’s Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo. BA says that DeCarr works in the low-to-mid-90s and has a nice curve, but lacks another above-average secondary offering at the moment.

DeCarr was the only non-collegian chosen in the first ten rounds by New York. The Yankees entered the draft with just $3.2MM in available bonus pool money, the least of any club other than the Orioles.

Pirates To Sign Supplemental 2nd Rounder Trey Supak

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The Pirates have agreed to sign supplemental second round choice Trey Supak for a $1MM bonus, reports MLB.com’s Jim Callis (via Twitter). Tim Williams of PiratesProspects.com reported yesterday that the sides had agreed to terms. The compensation round B pick with which Supak was taken (73rd overall) comes with a $772K allotment.

The Texas high-school righty drew a wide range of opinion. ESPN.com’s Keith Law rated Supak as the 30th-best prospect available through the draft, citing the quality of his delivery, while Baseball America had him down at 99th. MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis landed in the middle, ranking him the 62nd-best prospect. They say that he has good offerings but is most attractive for his projectability.

Pittsburgh has now signed both of its second-round choices after agreeing with Mitch Keller yesterday. Together, the pair has gone for $341.2K over slot. While Pittsburgh did save about $125.5K on first-rounder Cole Tucker, it looks like the club will have to come up with additional savings elsewhere to avoid paying a penalty.

Padres Sign First Three Picks

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FRIDAY, 5:40pm: The Padres have announced the signings of Turner, Gettys, and Lemond.

4:50pm: Turner tweets that he has officially signed with the Padres.

He will receive a $2.9MM bonus that lands about $177K above the allocation for the 13th overall pick, tweets John Manuel of Baseball America. That is an unusual result for a collegiate player, Manuel notes.

1:40pm: Callis now reports that Lemond has agreed to a $600K bonus that will save the Padres about $31K (Twitter link). Turner is the only of their top three picks to remain unsigned at this point.

WEDNESDAY, 9:07pm: The Padres have reached an agreement with Gettys for $1.3MM, reports MLB.com’s Jim Callis (on Twitter). That’s about $217K over slot, and since Turner and Lemond don’t figure to come in on under-slot deals, it will likely have to be made up further down the draft board.

8:16pm: The Padres are nearing deals with each of their top three picks — NC State shortstop Trea Turner, high school outfielder Michael Gettys and Rice right-hander Zech Lemond — a source tells Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune (Twitter link). The assigned pick values for the Nos. 13, 51 and 86 picks are $2.723MM, $1.083MM and $632K, respectively.

Baseball America ranked Turner ninth among draft prospects, while MLB.com ranked him 14th and ESPN’s Keith Law ranked him 18th. Turner is said by some scouts to possess 80 speed on the 20-80 scouting scale, and most feel that he has the instincts, range and a strong enough arm to handle shortstop. There are questions about his bat, as he could be a strong leadoff hitter if things break right or a bottom-of-the-order type if he doesn’t improve certain elements of his offensive approach.

Gettys (37th per MLB.com, 40th per BA and 45th per Law) is regarded as a true center field prospect with 70-grade speed and raw power but questions surrounding his hit tool. Lemond (36th per Law, 58th per MLB.com and 78th per BA) battled elbow inflammation this season and has spent time as both a closer and a starter in his college career. As Law writes, he could be a mid-rotation starter with improved consistency of his curve and changeup, but if not he should be able to carve out a career as a high-leverage reliever.

The Padres entered the 2014 draft with $6,098,600 to spend on their picks, per BA, and giving slot deals to each of their top three picks would use up about 73 percent of that budget.

Tigers To Sign Second-Rounder Spencer Turnbull

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The Tigers are in agreement with second-round draft pick Spencer Turnbull, reports MLB.com’s Jim Callis. Turnbull, a Crimson Tide right-hander, has agreed to the full slot value of $900,600. Callis writes that Turnbull’s fastball sits 92 to 94 mph and touches 98, and he has a good slider that is continually improving. With Turnbull, first-rounder Derek Hill and third-rounder Grayson Greiner all coming to terms, Detroit has locked up its top three picks.

Callis and his colleague Jonathan Mayo ranked Turnbull 71st in their pre-draft Top 200 list, but ESPN’s Keith Law was even more impressed by Turnbull, ranking him 53rd on his Top 100 list. Baseball America had the 6’3″, 230-pounder ranked 83rd on their Top 500 list.

In his scouting report, Law notes that Turnbull already has a pair of above-average pitches in his heater and 12-to-6 curve, suggesting that he can be at least a reliever in the Majors. Should his changeup develop further, the potential for starting is there, he adds. BA and MLB.com both praise Turnbull’s slider, though BA notes that he’s had some command issues in the past. All three scouting reports note the possibility that he’s a reliever, with BA saying that “most scouts” project him in the bullpen, however they all leave open the possibility that the development of a third pitch could lead to success as a starter.

The Tigers have $4.89MM to spend on this year’s draft, according to BA’s J.J. Cooper, and they’ve spent a combined $3.43MM to bring Hill, Turnbull and Greiner into the fold.

Rockies To Sign Second-Rounder Ryan Castellani

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The Rockies have agreed to terms with second-rounder Ryan Castellani on a $1.1MM bonus that is $58K below slot for the No. 48 overall selection in the draft, Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish reports (via Twitter).

Castellani, a high school right-hander out of Arizona, is the second under-slot signing made by the Rockies with their top picks, though the savings on Castellani pale in comparison to the savings on first-round pick Kyle Freeland, who signed for roughly $890K under slot. Though Colorado selected him with the 48th pick, Castellani ranked 98th on Baseball America’s Top 500 list and 131st on the Top 200 list compiled by Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis of MLB.com.

MLB.com praised his ability to induce grounders, noting that his fastball, which currently touches 93 mph, has room to pick up some extra life as his 6’4″ frame fills out. BA notes that he’s a strike-thrower who can locate on both sides of the plate and has flashed above-average potential with his slider and changeup.

The Rockies, who have $8.347MM to spend on this year’s draft (according to Baseball America’s J.J. Cooper), have now agreed to terms with two of their top three picks. They’ve yet to come to an agreement with Competitive Balance Round A selection Forrest Wall — a high school second baseman out of Florida.

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