Draft Signings: Kevin McAvoy, Tanner Scott
Here are the latest draft signings of note:
- Fourth-rounder Kevin McAvoy has agreed to terms with the Red Sox, tweets Callis. McAvoy will get a $300K bonus, saving the club $77.6K against his 134th slot allocation. Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal profiled the Bryant University righty after he was selected.
- The Orioles have agreed to sign sixth-round choice Tanner Scott, reports Jim Callis of MLB.com (via Twitter). Scott takes home a $650K bonus, which nearly triples the $240K slot value allocated to the 181st choice. Scott, a high school lefty out of Texas, was rated the 184th-best prospect by Baseball America but did not crack the top-200 list of Callis and his MLB.com colleague Jonathan Mayo.
Brady Aiken In Houston To Sign Contract
JUNE 23: Aiken arrived in Houston today to sign his contract, reports Mark Berman of FOX 26 Sports. Aiken acknowledged to Berman that the deal is done, and he’s set to begin his pro career.
JUNE 7, 7:17pm: The sides are “on the same page” regarding the bonus, though the deal still has pieces left to be negotiated, tweets Evan Drellich of the Houston Chronicle.
5:24pm: The Astros are in agreement with top overall choice Brady Aiken on a $6.5MM bonus, Jim Callis of MLB.com reports on Twitter. As Callis notes, Aiken — who is advised by Excel Sports Management — ties Jameson Taillon (Pirates, 2010) for the largest-ever bonus agreed to by a high school pitcher.
More importantly for Houston, that number falls well shy of the pick’s allotment of just over $7.9MM, leaving the club with ample additional funds to apply to other draft choices. The rest of the team’s day one haul consisted of seven college juniors, one college senior, a JuCo choice (Brock Dykxhoorn, sixth round), and one high-schooler (Jacob Nix, fifth round). One player who could see some money dangled is Mac Marshall, who appears set to attend LSU but was taken by Houston in the 21st round.
Aiken established a clear consensus as the best overall player heading into the draft, though many have noted the shaky recent history of prep arms chosen at the very top of the draft. Of course, focusing only on the players that happened to go at the top of the draft would mean ignoring success stories like that of Clayton Kershaw, who Aiken seems reasonably comparable to at this (early) stage of his development.
Certainly, draft observers agreed that Aiken was worth the top choice. He landed at the head of the final draft boards of Baseball America, ESPN’s Keith Law, and Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis of MLB.com. Those experts credit him with a heater that ranges into the mid-90s, plus secondary offerings (curve and change), fluid mechanics, and outstanding command.
Red Sox Sign First-Rounder Michael Chavis
JUNE 23rd: Chavis’ deal is now official after the infielder passed his physical, writes Alex Speier of WEEI.com.
JUNE 16th: The Red Sox have agreed to a full-slot bonus with first-rounder Michael Chavis, reports Ryan Hannable of MetroBoston (via Twitter). Chavis, taken with the 26th overall pick, will get $1,870,500 to forego his commitment to Clemson.
Chavis, a shortstop in high school ball who could transition to third (if not the outfield or even catcher) as a pro, is said to impress with his overall abilities more than any single tool. Reports say that he has a strong arm, solid power, good contact skills and bat speed, and decent running ability. That package, along with his reputed effort and work ethic, led Chavis to be rated the 21st overall prospect by MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis, 26th by Baseball America, and 28th by ESPN.com’s Keith Law.
The signing of Chavis wraps up a notable day for Boston’s system. The club landed an at-slot deal with second-rounder Sam Travis. Meanwhile, we also learned that compensation round A choice Michael Kopech would indeed sign for just under his slot allocation.
Diamondbacks Sign First-Rounder Touki Toussaint
MONDAY, 7:18am: Toussaint’s bonus is $2.7MM, well over the pick value of $2.338MM, tweets Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic.
FRIDAY, 6:27pm: The Diamondbacks have officially announced a deal with first-round selection Touki Toussaint. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reported that a deal was close (via Twitter). His bonus is expected to exceed the $2,338,200 slot allocation that came with the 16th overall pick, though precise details remain unknown.
The high school righty, who is still just 17 years old, was rated as high as the eighth-best prospect available entering the draft. MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis, who gave him that top-ten billing, say that Toussaint has a quick, loose arm and big curve ball. It sounds as if he still has work to do in commanding his offerings, repeating his delivery, and developing his third pitch (a change), but MLB.com’s experts feel that his raw stuff and athleticism give him an ample chance at success as a professional.
Baseball America (12th) and ESPN.com’s Keith Law (13th) both had Toussaint somewhat lower down their boards, but still agreed that Arizona received a good talent at its place in the draft. Indeed, in the view of Law, Toussaint arguably has more upside than any other high school right-hander in this year’s draft.
Arizona entered the draft with up to $7,228,300 in total pool space. According to Piecoro, via Twitter, the club has now inked all of its first twelve choices. Checking in at MLB.com’s bonus tracker, it appears that the Diamondbacks have saved $430.8K on their post-Toussaint picks, leaving a good deal of room to accommodate the over-slot spending needed to lure him away from Vanderbilt.
AL Notes: Downs, Angels, Blue Jays, Rays
Here’s the latest out of the American League:
- White Sox reliever Scott Downs would see his 2015 option vest if he appears in 55 games this year and does not end the season on the DL, reports MLBTR’s Tim Dierkes (via Twitter). The 39-year-old southpaw has seen action in 35 contests (after tonight’s outing), meaning that he has just 20 left to go to trigger the $4.25MM option. MLBTR’s Steve Adams looked yesterday at vesting option situations around the league.
- The Angels bullpen has not only been unreliable, but currently lacks a lefty, writes ESPN.com’s Buster Olney (Insider subscription required). The club may well look to a trade market that Olney says “should be comparatively flush” with attractive bullpen arms.
- You won’t see the Blue Jays in October if GM Alex Anthopoulos stands pat this summer, writes Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star. With Juan Francisco‘s offensive struggles (.586 OPS in the month of June), Griffin wants to see Toronto go out and get a second baseman that can play every day. Among the second baseman that might be available in July, he says, are Nick Franklin of the Mariners, Ramon Santiago of the Reds, Darwin Barney of the Cubs, and Ramiro Pena of the Braves.
- Gary Shelton of the Tampa Bay Times says the Rays need to start selling. With the club mired in last place, Shelton says it needs to move David Price, Ben Zobrist, Matt Joyce, and anything not nailed down. Meanwhile, a host of teams with a heavier-than-usual scouting presence for Price’s start tonight included the Blue Jays, Cardinals, Giants, Indians, and Yankees, tweets the Times’ Marc Topkin.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Draft Signings: Andrew Morales, Trevor Megill
Here are the day’s draft signings, with slot info courtesy of Baseball America …
- The Cardinals have agreed to terms with compensation round B pick Andrew Morales, reports Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter). The senior righty out of UC-Irvine was taken 71st overall pick, which carried a $796.1K allocation. Morales will earn a $546.1K bonus, tweets Jim Callis of MLB.com, meaning that the Cards will end up with exactly $250K in savings on the pick.
- Meanwhile, the Cardinals learned that they will not land third-round pick Trevor Megill, who instead will finish his college career, reports MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch. That takes his $504.4K bonus value out of play for St. Louis, though the club will gain another pick in next year’s draft (immediately following the third round).
Minor Moves: Kyle Stroup, Matt Packer, Cody Eppley
We’ll keep track of the day’s minor moves here:
- WEEI.com’s Alex Speier reports that the Red Sox have released right-hander Kyle Stroup (Twitter links). As Speier explains, the former 50th-round pick was considered a steal as an up-and-coming prospect, but he blew out both ACLs in a span of three seasons and was never able to rediscover the promise he showed prior to his injuries.
- The Indians announced (on Twitter) that Double-A southpaw Matt Packer has been released. A 32nd-round pick in 2009, Packer reached Triple-A as a 24-year-old in 2012 but struggled to a 5.50 ERA. He went back to Double-A and enjoyed a strong campaign in 2013, pitching to a 3.27 ERA with 7.0 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 in 154 innings. However, he faltered in his only two appearances of the season earlier this month. Packer has dealt with shoulder injuries throughout his minor league career but has been effective when healthy.
- The Pirates have released righty Cody Eppley, reports Rob Biertempfel of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (via Twitter). The 28-year-old had been working as a reliever at Triple-A Indianapolis, and carried a 6.43 ERA with 5.1 K/9 and 5.8 BB/9 through 14 innings. Eppley had a strong 2012 season with the Yankees but has not returned to that form since.
- MLBTR’s DFA Tracker shows three names still in limbo: Evan Reed (Tigers), Josh Outman (Indians), and Josh Stinson (Orioles).
Nationals To Sign Third-Rounder Jakson Reetz
The Nationals have agreed to a $800K deal with third-round choice Jakson Reetz, reports MLB.com’s Jim Callis (via Twitter). Reetz was taken with the 93rd overall pick, which came with a $567,300 slot allocation.
Callis labels Reetz the best all-around high school catcher that was available in the draft. Indeed, he and MLB.com colleague Jonathan Mayo rated him at the 40th slot on their overall board, just beneath the 38th-overall placement of ESPN.com’s Keith Law. Meanwhile, Baseball America had him somewhat further down its list, in the 62nd position. According to Baseball America’s assessment, Reetz features a quick, strong bat, good athleticism, and average power. As a defender, he shows good all-around skills behind the dish but could also play in the outfield or even pitch.
Drawing Reetz away from the University of Nebraska required the Nats to go $232.7K over slot. The organization entered the draft with up to $5,725,700 in available pool space. Washington has yet to agree with multiple choices, including 18th overall selection Erick Fedde and second-rounder Andrew Suarez. According to the MLB.com bonus tracker, the team has saved $236.4K on fifth-rounder Drew Van Orden, $114.8K on seventh-round choice D.K. Carey, and $107.6K on tenth-rounder Matthew Page.
Indians Designate Josh Outman For Assignment
The Indians have designated lefty Josh Outman for assignment, reports MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian (via Twitter). Outman came to Cleveland before the season in exchange for outfielder Drew Stubbs.
Outman, 29, carries a 3.28 ERA through 24 2/3 innings, but that mark may not tell the whole story. He has struck out 8.8 per nine, in line with his career averages, but has also walked a personal-worst 5.8 batters for every nine innings. Indeed, FIP (5.20), xFIP (4.36), and SIERA (4.16) all cast a shadow on his work this year — quite the opposite of the situation last year, when his 4.33 ERA appeared somewhat unlucky. He suffered perhaps his roughest outing of the year yesterday, giving up two earned on two hits and two walks.
Nevertheless, as teams look to shore up their relief corps over the summer, Outman could receive a good bit of attention. He certainly has done a solid enough job against same-handed hitters, holding opposing southpaws to a .180/.293/.380 line in 58 total plate appearances. Most of the damage has come from right-handed batters, who have touched Outman for a .296/.404/.523 line in the 52 times he has taken the hill against them.
Wolf Elects Free Agency; Evans Accepts Assignment
We’ll keep track of the day’s minor moves right here:
- Pitcher Randy Wolf has cleared outright waivers and elected free agency, reports MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro (via Twitter). The 37-year-old southpaw ultimately threw 25 2/3 frames for Miami, working to a 5.26 ERA and registering 19 strikeouts against just six walks. He will now look for his fourth organization of the season.
- Outrighted on Monday, Diamondbacks corner infielder/outfielder Nick Evans has decided to accept his assignment rather than electing free agency, tweets Chris Cotillo of MLBDailyDish.com. The 28-year-old saw only 11 plate appearances with Arizona, but managed a home run in his only hit. It was his first taste of the big leagues since a run of partial-season action with the Mets between 2008-11. Evans has been enjoying his finest season at Triple-A, and he will return to a .335/.393/.641 triple-slash.
- MLBTR’s DFA Tracker shows only two players in limbo, each of whom was designated yesterday: Grady Sizemore (Red Sox) and Josh Stinson (Orioles).