The Twins are expected to sign third-round pick Blayne Enlow for a bonus of roughly $2MM, reports MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger. That sum is more than two and a half times the size of the No. 76 overall selection’s slot value of $755,400.
Minnesota surprised many by selecting prep shortstop Royce Lewis over a more polished college product such as Louisville left-hander /first baseman Brendan McKay or Vanderbilt right-hander Kyle Wright — long rumored as the two favorites to go first overall — but Bollinger notes that Lewis is expected to sign for around $1MM under the $7.7MM slot value at No. 1 overall. That gives the team some added flexibility, and it seems that Enlow will be one of the primary beneficiaries of that maneuvering.
A high-school righty-hander out of Louisiana, Enlow was rated as the No. 14 prospect in the draft by ESPN’s Keith Law but fell to No. 76, perhaps in part due to a reported strong commitment to Louisiana State University. Baseball America ranked Enlow as the No. 29 prospect in the draft, according to Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com. He ranked 33rd on the lists of both Baseball America and Fangraphs.
Law notes that Enlow was a popular name among teams looking to go overslot later in the draft, which the Twins clearly appear to be doing. He draws praise across the board for his 6’4″, 180-pound frame that leaves him with room to add some size and likely some velocity to a fastball that sits in the low 90s. MLB.com notes that Enlow may have the best curveball of any high school arm in the class, and Fangraphs’ Eric Longenhagen notes that Enlow has the highest-measured breaking ball spin rate in the class. BA’s report on him notes that Enlow “is the kind of pitcher who sometimes makes it to [college], and if he does, blossoms into a potential front-of-the-rotation ace.”
The Twins have a bonus pool of $14.1MM in this year’s draft — the largest of any team in the league. That should give Minnesota the opportunity to spend a bid creatively even further down the line, whether on some of the players selected earlier today in rounds three through ten or tomorrow in rounds 11 and beyond.
Dang, must be nice to be able to wiggle that much out of picking in the 3rd round
In situations like this, did the Twins likely only have a verbal agreement with Lewis? Seems risky on the surface, though it’s done often so maybe not.
This whole process is slot values etc is confusing to me. If Enlow was indeed the 14th best prospect, why scare off teams about signability? He could’ve stayed silent, and gotten 2.5M or so if drafted in early to mid 1st round anyhow.
They have deals in place well before the draft starts. It’s technically illegal, of course, but every team does it and everyone in baseball knows about it.
Just like last year
The padres had a deal in place for grome, a lot more money than the Red Sox offered, but the took him anyways. They went until the final day to sign him if I remember correctly
“it seems that Enlow will be one of the primary beneficiaries of that maneuvering.” $2 million – $755,400 is roughly $1.25 million. If Lewis signed for “1 million less than slot” it seems that Enlow is the *only* beneficiary of that maneuvering.
Draft officially over. Luke Heimlich was not selected.