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Draft Signings: Evans, Armstrong, Horstman

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Here are today's most notable signings from Day 2 and Day 3 of the draft (slot information courtesy of Baseball America)…

  • The Royals signed fourth round draft pick Zane Evans, Baseball America's Jim Callis tweets.  Evans signed for $400K, below the $450.4K assigned slot value for the 114th overall pick.  Evans was both a catcher and a right-handed relief pitcher at Georgia Tech and Callis believes Kansas City will use him as a catcher.
  • The Reds have signed third-rounder Mark Armstrong, Callis reports (via Twitter).  Armstrong, a high school right-hander who had committed to Pitt, signed for exactly his assigned slot value of $496K.
  • The Mariners have signed St. John's left-hander Ryan Horstman, Callis reports (via Twitter).  Horstman, one of the few college freshmen eligible for the draft, was taken in the fourth round by the M's and signed for $550K, a significant bump up from his slotted price of $437.6K.
  • Junior college right-hander Kenyan Middleton tweeted that he has officially signed with the Angels earlier today. Middleton, the No. 95 overall pick, is advised by Tripper Johnson of Sosnick & Cobbe. His slot carries an assigned pick value of $541K.
  • The Cardinals signed third-rounder Mike Mayers for a little more than a $500K bonus — about $58K below his assigned pick value — according to Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Mayers is a right-hander out of Ole Miss.
  • Baseball America's Jim Callis tweets that the Phillies signed fourth-rounder Jake Sweaney for $400K. Sweaney's deal is $21K below slot. The high school catcher was committed to Oregon and has a plus arm with power potential in his bat.
  • The Twins signed third-rounder Stuart Turner for a $550K bonus that is well below the No. 78 pick's assigned value of $703K, Callis tweets. The Mississipi backstop was regarded as the best catch-and-throw college catcher in this year's draft, and Callis notes that he had a strong year at the plate too.
  • Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports that the Cardinals have agreed to an over-slot deal with 10th-rounder Malik Collymore. The Canadian high school second baseman will receive a $275K signing bonus, which is significantly larger than the recommended $135K.
  • Eleventh-round selection Spencer Navin also received a significantly over-slot deal, tweets Callis. The Dodgers gave the Vanderbilt backstop $300K — three times the $100K maximum for draft picks after the 10th round. Players drafted after the 10th round don't count toward a team's bonus pool as long as they sign for $100K or less. In other words, the $200K excess to sign Navin will count against the Dodgers' draft pool.
  • The Astros have signed fourth-round pick Conrad Gregor for a bonus of $482K, tweets Callis. The Vanderbilt first baseman has good patience and athleticism but has yet to tap into his power, Callis adds. Gregor signed for full slot value.

Diamondbacks Claim Nate Adcock

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The Diamondbacks announced that they have claimed right-handed pitcher Nate Adcock off of waivers from the Royals.  Adcock has been optioned to Triple-A Reno.

Adcock was designated for assignment by the Royals last week.  The 6-foot-4, 230-pounder posted a 3.79 ERA with 5.5 K/9 and 3.7 BB/9 in 31 relief appearances and five starts from 2011-12.  However, he hasn't found the same level of success in parts of two seasons at the Triple-A level, as evidenced by his 6.03 ERA with 5.4 K/9 and 3.3 BB/9 in 27 starts and two relief outings.  Arizona's 40-man roster is now at 40.

Royals “Very Likely” To Sign Sean Manaea

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Yahoo's Jeff Passan reports the Royals are "very likely" to sign Indiana State left-hander Sean Manaea to a well-over-slot deal. The Royals, according to Passan, are confident that the torn labrum in Manaea's hip won't be a long-term issue. Kansas City is familiar with Manaea's maladay, as Alex Gordon suffered a similar injury in 2009 (Twitter links).

The Royals gambled on this year's draft, selecting Stephen F. Austin State University shortstop Hunter Dozier with their eighth overall pick with the hopes of signing him under slot and making a run at Manaea. Things have gone according to plan thus far, as Dozier signed for $938K under slot value.

Manaea, who is advised by the Boras Corporation, was thought to be a potential No. 1 overall pick following a dominant showing in the Cape Cod League last summer. His injury issues caused him to fall out of the first round, and the Royals promptly took him with the first pick in the Competitive Balance round (No. 34 overall). That pick carries an assigned slot value of $1.623MM, per Baseball America, but Scott Boras made it clear weeks before the draft that Manaea would not sign for a discount.

In addition to Dozier, the Royals have also signed second-round pick Cody Reed for full slot value ($1.198MM). According to Passan's sources, a deal between the two sides could be reached as soon as this week.  The Royals have a draft pool of $8,290,700.

Royals Sign Second Rounder Cody Reed

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7:27pm: Reed's deal is worth $1.198MM, which matches the exact slot value for the No. 46 pick, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America (via Twitter).

6:41pm: The Royals announced that they have signed their second round pick Cody Reed.  Kansas City has now inked 18 of its 41 selections from the draft.

Reed, a 6-foot-5, 220-pound southpaw, set a new single-season school record with 96 strikeouts at Northwest Mississippi Community College in 73.1 innings.  At one point during the season, Reed struck out 57 batters in five starts, including a career-high 15 in one outing. 

The left-hander, who is being advised by B.B. Abbott of Jet Sports Management, is ranked 104th on Baseball America's top 500 and No. 31 on the top 100 list of ESPN's Keith Law.  BA writes that Reed is a project whose stuff is rather raw but his arm strength is undeniable.

Royals Sign Hunter Dozier

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The Royals have signed first-round selection Hunter Dozier for a bonus of $2.2MM, reports Jim Callis of Baseball America (on Twitter). Dozier, the eighth overall selection of the draft, is advised by Frontline Sports Management.  Hunter Dozier

A shortstop out of Stephen F. Austin State University in Texas, Dozier first appeared to be a puzzling selection by the Royals. While most projected him to go on the first day of the draft, he ranked 40th on Baseball America's Top 500 list, 46th on Jonathan Mayo's Top 100 list and 38th on Keith Law's Top 100 list. The method to the Royals' perceived madness was made clear, however, when the team selected Indiana State left-hander Sean Manaea with the No. 34 overall pick in the draft.

By getting Dozier at a below-slot price of $2.2MM — the assigned value of the No. 8 overall pick is $3,187,800, according to BA — the Royals have secured a Top 50 prospect while saving extra money to pursue Manaea, who was a potential No. 1 overall pick before hip injuries derailed his junior season.

Dozier will turn 22 in August, and while he played shortstop at Stephen F. Austin State, most project him to move to third base, where he has enough bat to fit the position. Mayo noted that Dozier is "not among the few elite college bats in this class, but he's not too far behind them, either." BA notes that he has "exceptional" power to the opposite field and could be a 20-25 homer player.

In a separate article for BaseballAmerica.com, Callis writes that the Royals felt they had no chance to draft Dozier at No. 34, as the Rays would've selected him at No. 21 or 29, and the D-backs had considered him with the 15th overall selection.

Photo courtesty of Stephen F. Austin State University media relations.

Central Notes: Ventura, Royals, Cardinals

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While the NL Central features three of baseball's best teams (Cardinals, Pirates, and Reds), only the Tigers have managed to keep above the .500 mark in the AL Central.  Here are some notes from around baseball's central divisions..

  • Robin Ventura reaffirmed his commitment to the White Sox, reports Doug Padilla of ESPN.com. Amid speculation over his desire, as well as the team’s possible seller status at the trade deadline, Ventura stated, "It's just one of those where I know I have my contract and it's going to go (to the end) and then you talk again. But because of this situation, I'm not going anywhere."
  • Joe Werner of ESPN.com takes a look at how the Royals have transformed as an organization.  While the club’s farm system was once highly regarded, because of trades and under performance, the Royals are still struggling at the big league level.
  • Buster Olney of ESPN.com weighed in on a host of topics, including the Cardinals hitting preparation, as well as steroids (Subscription Required).  Cardinals outfielder Matt Holliday gave his opinion on the latter, stating that fans should not have to wonder which players are clean and "and players shouldn't, either."

Draft Notes: Royals, Cubs, Bryant, Astros, Blue Jays

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In his final installment of his Top 100 Draft Flashback series, Matt Eddy of Baseball America assigned values to each of the top ten picks and gave tiered values to the entire first round.  Eddy lumps the together the picks in groups of five and uses WAR to weigh each tier against one another.  He also identifies the best players to be plucked out of each group, starting with Alex Rodriguez (1-5), Frank Thomas/Derek Jeter (6-10), and Manny Ramirez (11-15).  Here's the latest draft news as we close in on the first pick at 6pm central..

  • Keith Law of ESPN.com (via Twitter) hears that the Astros will take Mark Appel No. 1.
  • Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports (via Twitter) isn't sure if the Royals have a deal worked out with Phil Bickford but he's certain that some team does.  The right-hander's adviser kept him from talking to club executives this week.
  • It was reported earlier today that the Royals have reached a deal to take Bickford with the No. 8 pick, but the club is adamant that they have no such agreement, tweets Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star. 
  • There's some buzz around baseball that the Cubs are leaning towards taking Kris Bryant over a pitcher, tweets David Kaplan of CSNChicago.com.
  • Jim Bowden of ESPN.com (Twitter link) spoke to one scouting director picking early in first round about how he thinks the top of the draft will play out.  His guess is that the Astros will take Jonathan Gray, the Cubs will grab Mark Appel at No. 2, and the Rockies will draft Bryant with the third pick.  
  • Shi Davidi of Sportsnet broke down the Blue Jays' draft strategy and spoke with Matt Smoral about his draft experience last year.  The left-hander, who saw his stock drop thanks to a stress fracture in his right foot, assumed he was UNC-bound as he didn't expect any club to meet his $2MM asking price.  “Initially, I went, not into panic, but said, ‘Oh crap, I’m going to college,’” the No. 50 pick in last year's draft said. “[The new rules] definitely changed the game but the way I looked at was, I went in there with a number that me and my family and my agent got together, and I was good with going either way."  Toronto found room in the budget for Smoral by essentially punting their picks from rounds 4-10, and Davidi surmises that they'll be open to getting creative this year if another opportunity falls into their lap.
  • Marc Carig of Newsday (via Twitter) hears that the Mets will draft the best player available at No. 11, rather than target need.

Royals Claim Edinson Rincon Off Waivers

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The Royals have claimed Edinson Rincon off waivers from the Padres, Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star reports (via Twitter).  The infielder has been optioned to Double-A and placed on the seven-day disabled list as he recovers from knee surgery.

Rincon suffered his injury during minor league Spring Training camp and hasn't appeared in any games at any level this season.  The Padres designated him for assignment last week and requested unconditional release waivers on Rincon on Monday.  Rincon, 22, has a .285/.355/.422 line in 2041 PA in the Padres' farm system since 2007, playing mostly third base but appearing in 27 games as a left fielder last season.

Royals Designate Nate Adcock For Assignment

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The Royals have designated right-hander Nate Adcock for assignment, Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star reports (Twitter link).

Adcock, 25, has struggled badly at the Royals' Triple-A affiliate over the last two seasons but had slightly better results in the Majors in 2011-12.  The righty has posted a 3.79 ERA over 36 games (five of them starts) in his career with a 1.49 K/BB rate and a 5.5 K/9.  Adcock joined the Royals as a Rule 5 draft pick from the Pirates in 2010.

Draft Notes: Bickford, Royals, Stewart, Twins

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We've already had one post's worth of draft news today, and now here's the latest…

  • Other teams believe that the Royals have reached a deal to take right-handed high schooler Phil Bickford with the eighth overall pick, Peter Gammons reports (Twitter link).  Bickford, who is committed to Cal State Fullerton, hasn't been evaluated as No. 8 pick material — Baseball America ranks Bickford as the 20th best prospect in the draft, MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo has him at No. 26 and ESPN's Keith Law (Insider subscription required) has him all the way down at No. 55.
  • The Twins will take right-handed high schooler Kohl Stewart with the fourth overall pick, a source "with a stake in the Twins' draft" tells Darren Wolfson of 1500ESPN.com (Twitter link).  The source says that Stewart, a Houston native, won't be taken first overall by his hometown Astros and that Oklahoma righty Jonathan Gray won't fall to the Twins at #4.
  • The Twins would be "pleased" if Gray or third baseman Kris Bryant made it past the first three picks, La Velle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.  It isn't as certain if the club would be happy if Stanford right-hander Mark Appel was still available, as Appel is advised by Scott Boras and would likely be a tougher sign.
  • The Twins were one of the last teams to do extensive medical research on pitching prospects but scouting director Deron Johnson tells 1500ESPN.com's Phil Mackey that the team have been much more thorough over the last three years.  Four MInnesota pitchers taken in the first- or supplementary round between 2008-10 have undergone arm surgeries, three of them Tommy John cases.
  • Several Red Sox executives, including GM Ben Cherington, have scouted high school outfielders Austin Meadows and Clint Frazier, Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe reports.  Abraham predicts the Red Sox will take Meadows with the seventh overall pick unless Stewart or possibly Colin Moran are still available.
  • Since the Padres have a number of good arms in their minor league system, MLB.com's Corey Brock predicts the team will take a position player with the 13th overall pick.
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