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.
$500k for Keith is a bargain. MLB and players must all think we’re in for a significant downturn in baseball revenues. Keith was likely to be a 1st round pick in ’23 if he stuck with ASU. He took the bird in the hand now rather than waiting for the multi-million birds in the bush down the line.
it’s still on him to produce. Having the backing of a MLB team won’t hurt his development.
“MLB and players must all think we’re in for a significant downturn in baseball revenues”
I hope that is sarcasm, because at best MLB collectively has lost hundreds of millions in revenue between tickets, concession stands, and TV revenue across 30 teams. When baseball does reopen even if some states allow fans they will not come back in the same quantities as plenty of baseball fans will be sitting at home with their masks on too afraid to leave their homes.
It is curious why Colt Keith dropped to #132 considering MLB, BA, and ESPN had him much higher.