WEDNESDAY: The Dodgers have officially announced Holmes’s signing.
He will earn a bonus of $2.5MM, reports MLB.com’s Jim Callis (via Twitter). (Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com first reported on Twitter that Holmes would earn at least $2.4MM, with Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times tweeting that the bonus would not be more than $2.51MM.)
Holmes will count for $519.5K against the Dodgers’ total pool allocation.
MONDAY: The Dodgers have a deal in place with first-round pick Grant Holmes, the high school righty tells Mark Saxon of ESPNLosAngeles.com. Though terms remain unavailable, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports on Twitter that the University of Florida commit is expected to receive a bonus that lands above his $1,980,500 slot allotment.
Draft observers viewed Holmes as being well worth the 22nd pick with which he was selected. ESPN.com’s Keith Law ranked him as the sixth-best prospect available, saying that Holmes was the “most polished” high school arm in the draft. MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis rated him at 11th, noting that he has increased his fastball velocity while also bringing a hard curve and promising change to the mound. Baseball America had him in the 16th slot.
The Dodgers went at-slot to sign their second through fifth-round picks, but saved about $262K collectively on their seventh, ninth, and tenth-round choices. Los Angeles has yet to sign righty Brock Stewart (sixth round) or catcher Hunter Redman (eighth round), both of whom are college juniors. (Information via the MLBDailyDish.com draft signing tracker.) Entering the draft with about $4.95MM in achievable pool space, the Dodgers could also potentially spend up to $247K more without giving up a pick in next year’s draft.
