Draft Signings: Mariners, Nats, Pirates, Royals, O’s
Here are the latest draft signings from beyond the first round, with the most recent news at the top of the post….
- The Mariners announced that third-rounder Edwin Diaz and third-round compensation pick Tyler Pike have agreed to terms. Figures weren't announced but Kendall Rogers of Perfect Game USA (via Twitter) reports that left-hander Pike signed for an $850K bonus, well above the recommended slot value of $370.8K. Diaz is a right-handed pitcher and, as the 98th overall pick, has a recommended bonus of $485.7K.
- The Nationals paid second-round pick Tony Renda a $500K bonus, reports Baseball America's Jim Callis (via Twitter). Renda, a second baseman from Cal, carried a recommended bonus price of $630K as the 80th overall pick.
- The Pirates announced the signing of high school pitcher Jon Sandfort, the club's third-round selection. Terms were not disclosed, but Jim Callis tweets that Sandfort signed for his exact recommended bonus of $462.9K.
- The Royals have announced (Twitter link) the signing of Vanderbilt left-hander Sam Selman, the club's second-round draft pick. Selman signed for a $750K bonus, reports Baseball America's Jim Callis, which is below the recommended $781.6K bonus price for the 66th overall pick. The Royals have now signed 28 of 40 draft picks, including all of their picks from the first 11 rounds.
- Another Royals draft signing, fourth-rounder Kenny Diekroeger, will receive a $500K bonus, according to Jim Callis of Baseball America (Twitter link). The recommended price for Diekroeger's draft position was $346.6K.
- The Orioles have agreed to terms with more than 20 draft picks, reports Steve Melewski of MASNsports.com. The club is "in the very early or beginning stages" of negotiations with first-round pick Kevin Gausman and second-round pick Branden Kline.
Draft Signings: Mariners, Mets, Royals, A’s, Pirates
Here are today's latest draft signings, with the most recent updates up top..
- The Mariners signed sixth-round pick Timmy Lopes for $550K, well over the pick value of $198K, according to Callis (via Twitter). The infielder out of California is said to have a good bat, not unlike his older brother Christian Lopes who was drafted by the Blue Jays last year. The M's also announced that they signed 26 others from this year's draft and have now inked 25 of their first 30 picks.
- The Mets signed third-rounder Matt Koch for $425K, slightly below his pick value of $445K, tweets Jim Callis of Baseball America. The right-hander has a 92-96 mph fastball and flashes good slider and changeup.
- The Royals signed fourth-round pick, Stanford infielder Kenny Diekroeger, tweets Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star. Just one of Kansas City's top ten picks remain unsigned.
- The A’s announced that they agreed to terms with center fielder Herschel Powell (20th round), right-hander Lee Sosa (26th), shortstop Christopher Wolfe (30th), and first baseman John Wooten (37th).
- The Pirates announced that they signed eight draft picks, including infielder Eric Wood (sixth round). Pittsburgh has now inked nine draft picks in total and continues to negotiate with eighth-overall pick Mark Appel.
Royals Notes: Francoeur, Myers, Greinke
The Royals' offense, which ranked sixth in the American League a year ago, now sits next-to-last in scoring with 224 runs. Here's the latest on the 24-34 Royals, before their series with the Brewers begins…
- Wil Myers’ tremendous minor league numbers have put Jeff Francoeur on the trading block, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports. The Royals could potentially part with Francoeur and call up Myers without damaging the team’s credibility in the short term. However, the Royals intend to be patient with Myers and Francoeur’s two-year $13.5MM contract could deter some suitors.
- Sam Mellinger of the Kansas City Star explains that Zack Greinke could be a fit in Kansas City this offseason, despite the apparently acrimonious conclusion to his first stint with the Royals. Greinke, a free agent after the season, requested a trade from the Royals following the 2010 season, since he didn’t believe they were close to contending. Billy Butler has had critical words for Greinke in the past, but he’d welcome the right-hander back. “A lot of things get overshadowed when you have that type of talent,” Butler said.
Astros Acquire D’Andre Toney From Royals
The Astros announced that they have acquired outfielder D’Andre Toney from the Royals as the player to be named later in the March 20th trade that sent Jason Bourgeois and Humberto Quintero to Kansas City. Toney was drafted by the Royals in the 14th round last year.
Drafted players cannot be traded until they have been in professional baseball for a year which is why Toney was made to be a PTBNL rather than in the initial trade. The 20-year-old hit .340/.432/.587 in 43 games last year for the Royals' Arizona League affiliate. At the time of the deal, Astros GM Jeff Luhnow noted that the PTBNL would be the "key component" of the trade.
Draft Signings: Mathisen, Maxwell, Cardinals
Here are Saturday's notable non-first round draft pick signings…
- The Pirates have agreed to sign second rounder Wyatt Mathisen according to Rob Biertempfel of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (on Sulia). Tim Williams of Pirates Prospects first reported the agreement. The high school catcher from Texas was the 69th overall pick, which carries a slot value of $746K.
- The Athletics have signed second rounder Bruce Maxwell for a below slot $770K, reports Jim Callis of Baseball America (on Twitter). The college bat was slotted for $831K. Maxwell is represented by Matt Sosnick and Adam Karon of Sosnick Cobbe Sports.
- In addition to first rounder Stryker Trahan, the Diamondbacks announced that they've agreed to terms with 30 other draft picks. Second rounder Jose Munoz and third rounder Jake Barrett highlight the crop. The Arizona Republic has the full list.
- Ben Nicholson-Smith reports (on Twitter) that the D'Backs gave ninth rounder Jeff Gibbs a $90K bonus plus college tuition. Callis reports (on Twitter) that they gave fourth rounder Charles Taylor a $250K bonus. Slot money for those two picks is $125K and $286K, respectively.
- The Cardinals have signed third rounder Tim Cooney for a straight slot $404K bonus, reports Callis (on Twitter). The left-hander hails from Wake Forest.
- The Mariners have agreed to terms with fourth rounder Patrick Kivlehan, reports MLB.com's Josh Liebeskind. Slot money for the Rutgers third baseman is $353K. Seattle also signed 12th rounder Mike Faulkner for $100K according to Callis (on Twitter).
- The Red Sox have signed their fifth through tenth round draft picks according to WEEI.com's Alex Speier. All six players are college seniors.
- The Royals have signed sixth rounder Zach Lovvorn for $275K, reports Callis (on Twitter). Slot money for the pick was $194K.
- The Astros announced the signing of eight more picks, including ninth rounder Daniel Minor. Houston has now signed 18 picks total according to the release.
- The Phillies have signed tenth rounder Kevin Brady for a straight slot $125K bonus according to Callis (on Twitter). The right-hander is out of Clemson.
Minor Moves: Kris Watts, Tim Sexton
Keeping track of the day's minor moves…
- The Nationals have acquired minor league catcher Kris Watts from the Pirates in exchange for cash, as announced on the Pirates' official Twitter feed. Watts was Pittsburgh's 16th-round pick in the 2006 draft and has a .259/.357/.385 line in 1702 career minor league plate appearances.
- The Royals signed right-hander Tim Sexton, according to MLB.com's transactions page. The 24-year-old pitched in the Dodgers' organization last year, posting a 5.48 ERA with 6.3 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 in 162 2/3 innings at Triple-A and Class A. In five minor league seasons he has a 5.15 ERA with 6.5 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9.
- Matt Eddy of Baseball America details the remainder of the week's minor transactions.
Royals Sign Kyle Zimmer
4:52pm: Zimmer signed for a $3MM bonus, reports Jim Callis of Baseball America (Twitter link).
4:07pm: The Royals have announced the signing of right-hander Kyle Zimmer, their first round pick (and the fifth pick overall) from the 2012 amateur draft. Terms of the deal were not announced, but the slot value for the fifth overall pick is $3.5MM. The Royals have already gone over slot on one pick today, third-rounder Colin Rodgers.
Zimmer, 20, was considered to be a prospect who could be on a relatively fast track to the big leagues. He is expected to make a few starts for the Royals' Arizona Rookie League team before heading to a higher-level minor league club. Zimmer has only been pitching since his freshman year at the University of San Francisco but possesses a strong curveball and a fastball that can reach the mid-90's.
Royals Sign Third-Round Pick Colin Rodgers
The Royals have signed third-round draft pick Colin Rodgers, MLBTR has learned. The Louisiana high school southpaw signed for $700K, exceeding MLB's slot of $476,500 for the 100th overall pick. Rodgers is represented by Tripper Johnson of Sosnick Cobbe Sports.
Rodgers, who had committed to Auburn, told Justin Hokanson of AuburnSports.com he had a tentative agreement with the Royals but had yet to make a final decision. Baseball America ranked Rodgers 207th on their top 500, grading the lefty's curveball as plus when he's at his best.
Draft Notes: Diamondbacks, Zimmer, Red Sox, Astros
The latest on the MLB draft, which has reached its conclusion after three busy days…
- The Diamondbacks are "close" to agreeing to terms with first-round pick Stryker Trahan, tweets Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic. The high school catcher was tabbed with the No. 26 pick.
- The Royals appear to be close to a deal with fifth-overall pick Kyle Zimmer, tweets Bob Dutton of The Kansas City Star. The right-hander will likely start with the club's Arizona League affiliate but may go to Idaho Falls instead.
- The Red Sox are nearing deals with supplemental first round selection Pat Light and second rounder Jamie Callahan, Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe reports (on Twitter).
- ESPN.com's Keith Law reviews the draft class of each National League team, noting that he loves what the Astros did. The Padres impressed Law early on, and he liked the Nationals' selection of Lucas Giolito.
- A legal dispute in Ohio could impact the future use of advisors, as Darren Heitner explains in a piece at Forbes.com. The MLBPA has warned agents that a case involving the former representatives of Andy Oliver “could represent a significant threat” to agents by placing restrictions on who can represent athletes who live or attend school in Ohio.
- There have been lots of pre-draft agreements between teams and players, ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick hears (Twitter link). "It's a bigger joke this year than it's ever been,'' one agent told Crasnick.
Quick Hits: Bard, Royals, Bauer
There's been lots of draft chatter these past few days, but that's not all that's going on around the Major Leagues. Here are some more notes from around MLB…
- The Red Sox optioned Daniel Bard to Triple-A, Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe reports (on Twitter). Bard has struggled with his command in the rotation and, as Dave Cameron of FanGraphs notes, his velocity is down as well. Bard still figures to go to arbitration for the second time this coming offseason.
- The Royals don’t intend to rush Wil Myers to the Major Leagues despite the top prospect’s minor league successes, Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com reports (on Twitter). The Royals could reduce the chances that Myers qualifies for super two status following the 2014 season by waiting another few weeks to call him up.
- Diamondbacks pitching prospect Trevor Bauer has pitched well enough in the minors to deserve a promotion, but "nothing has been decided" regarding the right-hander's timeline, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports (Twitter links). Bauer and Myers are in similar situations; they probably won't qualify as super twos if their teams keep them in the minors for a few weeks.