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2020 Amateur Draft Signings

Amateur Draft Signings: 6/17/20

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We’ll keep track of today’s amateur draft signing news here…

  • The Tigers have signed fifth-rounder Colt Keith for $500K, Jim Callis of MLB.com tweets. It’s an above-slot deal for Keith, the 132nd overall selection whose pick came with a recommended value of $426,600. The Mississippi high school third baseman was an Arizona State recruit, notes Callis, who adds that Keith has the ability to hit for average and power at the plate. His arm’s also so strong that he was a legit pitching prospect, per Callis. Notably, Keith was among the top 100 prospects in the pre-draft rankings of Baseball America (No. 57), MLB.com (87) and ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel (99).
  • The Rockies have reached an agreement with fourth-rounder Case Williams, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports. Williams’ pick (110) carried a recommended value of $527,800, but he’ll earn $450K, according to Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post. A high school right-hander from Colorado, Williams ranked as FanGraphs’ 231st-best prospect entering the draft.
  • Let’s update a couple previously covered signings that didn’t come with financial information when they were reported: Astros fourth-rounder and 131st overall pick Zach Daniels agreed to a deal worth $400K, down from the slot value of $430,800, according to Callis. Meanwhile, Rays fifth-rounder Jeff Hakanson, the 155th choice, received the full slot value of $340K, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times relays.

Mets Agree To Terms With Second-Rounder Isaiah Greene

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The Mets have agreed to terms on a bonus with second round selection Isaiah Greene, according to MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo (via Twitter). He’ll receive $850K.

The 69th overall selection used to nab Greene came with a $929,800 pool allocation. Accordingly, the New York organization will actually save some funds to apply to other drafted players.

That seems like a solid result for the Mets, given that they had to convince Greene to turn pro rather than attending the University of Missouri. The club has yet to lock up its first two selections, high school outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and Mississippi State hurler J.T. Ginn.

Entering the draft, Greene was on the rise. He reached 62nd on the MLB.com board and 49th on the ranking of Baseball America. Greene is said to have strong existing hit and speed tools, real potential to stick in center field, and some power projection.

Additional Amateur Draft Signings: 6/16/20

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We caught up on draft signings earlier today, but a few more trickled out this evening …

  • The Tigers have a deal with third-rounder Trei Cruz, per MLB.com’s Jim Callis (via Twitter). A shortstop out of Rice University, Cruz will secure a $900K bonus that lands just over the slot value of $857,400. None of the major draft pundits ranked Cruz among the hundred best draft-eligible prospects, but the Detroit organization was obviously intrigued. If you’re a believer in bloodlines, you can’t do much better than this. Cruz will aim to follow his father, grandfather, and great uncles in appearing in the majors.
  • Mets fourth-rounder Matthew Dyer is on board with a $350K bonus, per MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo (Twitter link). That’ll save the New York org nearly $230K to apply to other draftees. Dyer, an Arizona product, ranked 333rd on Baseball America’s final draft board. Mayo credits him with a strong throwing arm and good athleticism for a backstop.
  • The Blue Jays have added Zach Britton — not to be confused with Yankees reliever Zack (formerly Zach) Britton. This new Zach Britton landed $97,500 from the Toronto organization, freeing the club to allocate the rest of the $410,100 slot value elsewhere. Britton spent time in the outfield and behind the dish at Louisville. BA graded him just inside the top 200 prospects available for selection this year. Britton was slashing .322/.446/.542 when the season was cut short.
  • Fifth rounder Jeff Hakanson is in agreement with the Rays on a bonus, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter). Dollar values aren’t yet known publicly, but it seems likely to be an under-slot deal. Hakanson, a righty out of Central Florida, wasn’t ranked on any of the major boards. His slot comes with a $340K bonus pool allocation.
  • The Cardinals announced an agreement with their own fifth-round selection, Long Beach State outfielder LJ Jones IV. MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo tweets that Jones has picked up a $100K bonus, meaning the Cards have another $250,300 to work with in signing other players. Jones didn’t merit mention in any rankings either, though the redshirt sophomore never really got a chance to showcase himself in college owing to injuries and the coronavirus situation.

Undrafted Free Agent Signings: 6/16/20

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This year’s five-round draft left a lot of deserving players looking for deals on the open market. Here’s a roundup of some of the many recent undrafted players who have reached agreements with MLB organizations:

Pirates, 2nd-Rounder Jared Jones Agree To Deal

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The Pirates have agreed to terms with second-round pick Jared Jones, Kevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review was among those to report. Financial details of the deal aren’t known yet, but Jones’ pick, No. 44, comes with a recommended slot value of $1,689,500. The Pirates are fifth in the majors in available bonus pool space at $11,154,500.

The high school right-hander from California had a fallback in the University of Texas – to which he committed before the draft – had he been unable to reach an agreement with the team that picked him. Jones will instead continue his development as a pro after a dominant run as a high school pitcher and hitter. The 18-year-old logged a 0.89 ERA with 255 strikeouts and 78 walks in 180 1/3 innings, and he slashed .394/.473/.566 at the plate, according to Gorman.

Prior to the draft, Jones came in 41st at Baseball America, 51st in the rankings of ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel, 55th at MLB.com, 85th in the rankings of Keith Law of The Athletic, and 91st at FanGraphs. Despite his prowess as a two-way player, MLB.com writes that Jones’ “future is definitely on the mound,” as he owns a repertoire that consists of a high-90s fastball with a promising slider and changeup.

Amateur Draft Signings: 6/16/20

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We’ll keep track of the latest amateur draft signings here…

  • The Cardinals announced the signing of outfielder Alec Burleson, whom they drafted 70th overall. He’ll earn $700K, quite a bit less than the $906,800 value of his pick, according Jim Callis of MLB.com. The Cards landed the choice they used on Burleson as compensation for the departure of outfielder Marcell Ozuna in free agency. An East Carolina University product, Burleson topped out as FanGraphs’ 108th-ranked prospect before the draft. Burleson was a successful first baseman and left-handed pitcher in college, but he’s regarded as a much better hitting prospect, MLB.com notes.
  • The Mets have signed third-round pick Anthony Walters for $20K, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com tweets. It’s a stunningly low amount for a player whose pick, No. 91, was said to be worth $647,300. The total Walters received only matches the maximum sum an undrafted player can get this year. Walters, a former San Diego State shortstop, didn’t rank among Baseball America’s top 500 before the draft. However, Mayo observes that Walters brings “good hands” as a defender and “sneaky pop” at the plate.
  • The Padres have inked fourth-rounder Levi Thomas for $80K, far below the $533K slot value of the 109th pick, Jim Callis of MLB.com reports. The right-hander from Troy “has an impressive history of throwing strikes and his fastball seems to have qualities that teams love,” Baseball America wrote in ranking Thomas as the 224th-best prospect in the 2020 class.
  • The Nationals have reached a $20K agreement with fourth-round catcher Brady Lindsly, per Callis. The University of Oklahoma product, who was not one of BA’s top 500 prospects, did not expect to get drafted.

Giants Agree To Above-Slot Bonus With 3rd-Rounder Kyle Harrison

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The Giants have agreed to a $2.5MM bonus with third-round selection Kyle Harrison, according to Marc Delucchi (via Twitter). If indeed a contract is finalized, Harrison will forego his commitment to UCLA.

That’s a big number for a player chosen with the 85th overall selection, which came with a $710,700 slot allocation. But the Giants will evidently find a way to free up some funds by inking below-slot deals with other draft choices.

Harrison, a Bay Area high school southpaw, wasn’t generally graded as a top-end prospect entering the draft. But MLB.com (63rd) and Baseball America (71st) did rate him among the hundred best players available.

The lefty will enter the San Francisco organization with high hopes given the big bonus. Reports generally frame him as a fairly polished and crafty hurler rather than a high-upside power arm. It seems evident that the Giants see a clear path to a big league rotation, if not alaso some front-of-the-rotation potential.

Amateur Draft Signings: 6/14/20

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We’ll round up the latest draft signings around the league:

Latest Signings

  • The Dodgers have agreed to a deal with fifth-rounder Gavin Stone, as the right-hander announced himself on his Twitter feed.  Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times (Twitter link) reports that Stone will receive a $100K bonus, which is significantly below the $327.2K slot price attached to the 159th overall pick.  Stone was the second-last player chosen in this year’s abbreviated draft, and wasn’t prominently featured in any pre-draft rankings apart from a 303rd-place spot on Baseball America’s top 500 draft prospects list.  The Central Arkansas product pitched well in his first real season as a starting pitcher, including a no-hitter in his final start of the year.

Earlier Today

  • Angels fourth-rounder Werner Blakely is expected to sign with the club for $900K, as first reported by Mason McRae of Prospects 365 (via Twitter) and confirmed by Robert Murray (Twitter link). Blakely, a prep shortstop from Michigan, ranked as the #297 prospect in the class on Baseball America’s pre-draft top 500. BA lauds his projectable 6’3″ frame, athleticism and power potential, but cautions that he’s exceptionally raw on both sides of the ball, perhaps not unexpected for a cold weather high schooler. Blakely’s draft position, #111 overall, comes with a slot value of just over $522K, so the Angels will go well over slot to woo the 18-year-old away from his commitment to Auburn.
  • The Angels have also inked third-round choice David Calabrese, according to McRae. He’ll earn a signing bonus of $744K, the slot value of the #82 selection with which he was chosen. Calabrese is an outfielder from the Canadian high school ranks, and was regarded as the top Canadian prospect in this year’s draft class. An Arkansas commit, he’s just 17 and is therefore one of the youngest players in his class thanks to his reclassification for this year. He’s a small outfielder who provides high-class speed on the bases, though he doesn’t offer much in the way of power. Most scouts think his speed and instincts will allow him to play center field in the long-term.

Amateur Draft Signings: 6/13/20

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Let’s kick off this Saturday morning by checking in on some of the latest post-draft signings from around the league. We’ll update this post periodically throughout the day as more news trickles in…

Latest Signings

  • Cardinals fourth-rounder Ian Bedell will sign with the team, the right-hander told MLB.com’s Anne Rogers.  Terms of the agreement weren’t revealed, though the 122nd overall selection has a $469K slot value.  “I would have gone back to school if the signing bonus wasn’t there, but they made a good offer, and I couldn’t be happier,” said Bedell, who grew up as a Cards fan.  Draft pundits had a pretty wide range of opinions on Bedell’s draft stock (The Athletic’s Keith Law ranked him as the 58th-best prospect in the draft class, Fangraphs 85th, MLB Pipeline 88th, and Baseball America 105th), though those rankings still represent somewhat of a steal for the Cardinals with the 122nd pick.  Bedell drew praise for his command and control of his pitches rather than his pure arsenal, and he pitched very well in the Cape Cod League last summer.

Earlier Today

  • The Phillies and third-rounder Casey Martin have reached an agreement, Martin told The Athletic’s Matt Gelb (subscription required).  The 87th overall pick has a $689.3K slot price attached, and while Martin didn’t specify the terms of his contract, the Arkansas shortstop said the deal was a “fair amount for where I was picked and for my value.”  Martin didn’t play well before the 2020 college season came to an abrupt end, which may explain why he fell to the third round despite late-first/early-second round grades from prospect analysts (MLB Pipeline ranked Martin as the 30th-best prospect available in the draft).  There are questions surrounding Martin’s ability to avoid strikeouts and whether or not he could remain at shortstop in the long term, though he carries a lot of hitting potential and outstanding 70-grade speed.
  • The Astros have agreements in place with a couple of their draft picks from this week’s abbreviated MLB draft. Fourth-round selection Zach Daniels has an agreement in place, though the terms of the deal have not yet been disclosed, per Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. The Astros also came to terms with shortstop Shay Whitcomb from UC San Diego, who was the 160th and final pick of this draft (Mark Berman of KRIV Fox 26 had the report).  Though Whitcomb was the final player chosen, the slot value of that pick is still $324.1K, a significant bump from what those undrafted players can command. Players who went undrafted can sign with any team of their choosing, but only for a maximum payout of $20K. 
  • Orioles fifth-round selection Carter Baumler has plans to sign with Baltimore, per Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun. Baumler is a 6’2″ right-handed pitcher hailing from Dowling Catholic High School in Iowa. The 133rd overall pick of the draft carries a slot value of $422.3K. Baumler’s deal will come in well above slot at $1.5MM, tweets Mason McRae of Prospects 365 (confirmed by Tommy Birch of the Des Moines Register). As Birch writes in a full piece, Baumler turned down two other teams before agreeing to sign with the Orioles. Had he not received an offer to his liking, Baumler was ready to play college ball for Texas Christian.
  • Rangers second-rounder Evan Carter will sign his first professional contract rather than attend Duke University, according to T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com. Carter is a lefty-swinging outfielder out of Elizabethton High School in Tennessee, and was picked by the Rangers with the 50th overall pick in the draft. The financials of his deal have not been disclosed, but the slot amount for the 50th overall selection is $1,469,900.

Team Plans For Signing Undrafted Amateurs

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Now that MLB’s abbreviated 2020 draft is in the books, we can move along to the next phase of this one-off amateur signing season. Undrafted amateur players will now be free to sign with any team of their choosing, though they are capped with a signing bonus of $20K. Thus, the setup here presents a fascinating situation for amateur ballplayers and for us, those interested in parsing the ins-and-outs of roster-building. Here we have a unique situation where money will not necessarily be the driving factor for players choosing their first professional team. As players start to sign, we’ll likely hear stories that shed light on player perspective, which could paint an interesting picture of how young players view different franchises around baseball. For now, we’re starting to hear from teams themselves about spending limits for this class of amateur free agents. We’ll use this post to update those strategies as they trickle in…

  • The Giants have no apparent limits when it comes to signing amateur free agents now that the draft is completed. John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle provides a primer for this period of amateur free agents, writing, “The process starts at 6 a.m. Sunday, and the Giants will compete with the other 29 teams for the best available talent. But rather than outspending the others, all they can do is try to outsell them and offer appealing opportunities.” Given the Giants’ current position as a team looking to infuse as much young talent as possible, one would expect them to be aggressive in their attempts to add players from this pool. Obviously, more players than usual will be returning to college or committing to school as high school graduates, but given the volatility of the MLB draft under normal circumstances, it’s fair to expect a quality player or two to emerge from this pool of undrafted amateurs.
  • The Marlins are planning on limiting their pool of undrafted amateur free agents to 10 signings or less, per Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald (Twitter links). Along with their six drafted players, all of whom are expected to sign, the Marlins can expect an influx of 16 players max.
  • Similarly, the Mariners don’t expect to go hog wild with this year’s class of undrafted amateur. Per MLB.com’s Corey Brock, the Mariners’ Scouting Director Scott Hunter said the Mariners will only be signing between five and ten amateur free agents.
  • The Royals, meanwhile, are ready to shop, tweets Jeff Rosen of the Kansas City Star. The Royals could be big-time players in this sphere, as they’ve generated some goodwill recently because of their treatment of minor league players. Kansas City might not typically be a major free agent draw, but for amateur players, it’s a different story. The Royals have the opportunity and a long track record of highly valuing their own players. For players looking for their first professional contract, the Royals have a lot to offer. Among other things, they’re ready to be aggressive. GM Dayton Moore has the green light to “sign as many of those guys as we can,” per Lynn Worthy of the Kansas City Star.
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