Giants To Sign Top Picks Chris Shaw, Jalen Miller
The Giants have agreed to significant bonuses with a pair of their top picks, reports MLB.com’s Jim Callis (Twitter links). First-round pick Chris Shaw will sign for a $1.4MM bonus that is $485K shy of his No. 31 slot’s $1.885MM value. Nearly all of that savings will be used on third-round pick Jalen Miller, who receives a $1.1MM bonus despite the assigned slot value of $598K for the No. 95 pick.
Miller, a prep shortstop out of Georgia, was actually consistently ranked higher than Shaw heading into the draft. Miller was listed as the No. 35 prospect in the draft according to Baseball America. Callis an Jonathan Mayo ranked him 41st at MLB.com, while Fangraphs’ Kiley McDaniel had him 43rd, and ESPN’s Keith Law ranked Miller 60th. Shaw, a first baseman/corner outfielder out of Boston College, ranked 45th, 46th, 55th and 62nd, respectively, on those same lists.
Scouts are split on whether or not Miller will remain at shortstop or slide to the other side of the bag and play second base as a pro. BA notes that scouts like his plus speed and soft hands, but his arm strength and infield actions could ultimately land him at second. He’s said by BA to have a knack for making contact but only average power potential. McDaniel feels there’s double-digit homer potential in there, and MLB.com favorably comps him to Reds second baseman Brandon Phillips due to his frame and 15-homer upside in the middle infield. ESPN feels he has a chance to stick at short and should be given the opportunity to prove that he can handle the position in pro ball.
Shaw’s power is his calling card, but the 6’3″, 245-pound left-handed hitter broke his hamate bone in April this year and didn’t show the same power upon his return. That creates some uncertainty surrounding his draft stock, but it also is likely the reason that the Giants were able to get an under-slot deal for him at 31. BA notes that last summer in the Cape Cod League, Shaw’s homers became legendary, including some 450-foot tape-measure shots to center field. McDaniel placed a 60 grade on his raw power, and MLB.com gave his power an even more enthusiastic 65 grade on the 20-80 scale.
Anthony Swarzak Signs With KBO’s Doosan Bears
Right-hander Anthony Swarzak has signed a contract with the Doosan Bears of the Korea Baseball Organization, the Bears announced (Twitter link in Korean). The 29-year-old Swarzak, a client of Jet Sports Management, had been pitching with the Indians. Cleveland announced this afternoon that they have sold his contract to Doosan (Twitter link).
Swarzak will bring to the Bears six years of Major League experience, nearly all of which came with the Twins. A former second-round draft pick, Swarzak spent parts of five seasons in Minnesota, working both out of the rotation and out of the bullpen. Formerly ranked by Baseball America as the No. 100 prospect in all of baseball, Swarzak didn’t establish himself as a starter but was arguably the game’s best long man in 2013 when he worked to a 2.91 ERA and led all Major League relievers with 96 innings pitched.
A down season in 2014 led the Twins to non-tender Swarzak, however, and he latched on with the Indians on a minor league deal. After a strong Spring Training, Swarzak made the Indians’ roster and pitched quite well for them in 13 1/3 innings this year, allowing five earned runs with 13 strikeouts against four walks. Despite that showing, he was designted for assignment and outrighted in May.
All told, Swarzak has a career 4.45 ERA with 5.6 K/9, 2.6 BB/9 and a 41.7 percent ground-ball rate in 453 Major League innings. He’ll now head overseas to Korea, where he’ll replace former big leaguer Yunesky Maya on the team’s roster. The 33-year-old Maya has an 8.17 ERA this season despite having thrown a no-hitter early in the 2015 season (h/t: Sung Min Kim of River Ave. Blues on Twitter). This is the second time in recent months that the Bears have shown an interest in Swarzak, as the team also reportedly made a run at him this offseason prior to his signing with Cleveland.
Orioles To Sign Ryan Mountcastle
The Orioles have reached agreement on a deal with first-round choice Ryan Mountcastle, according to Jim Callis of MLB.com (on Twitter). Mountcastle’s deal is slightly below slot as he’ll make $1.3MM versus the suggested ~$1.71MM. He was advised and is now represented by agent Tripper Johnson of Sosnick Cobbe & Karon.
Mountcastle, a Florida native, played shortstop in high school but projects as a third baseman, according to Callis. The youngster boasts solid bat speed to go with the strong arm necessary for playing the third base position. The Orioles received the pick with which they selected Mountcastle as compensation for the loss of Nelson Cruz to free agency.
Mountcastle ranked as the draft’s No. 108 prospect in the eyes of Fangraphs’ Kiley McDaniel, 110th on the Top 200 compiled by Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com, and 122nd on Baseball America’s Top 500.
Baseball America’s scouting report of Mountcastle credited him for having above-average power and speculated that his defensive shortcomings could result in him playing left field. McDaniel feels he’ll end up in left as well, giving him at least average tools across the board with the exception of in-game power, where he’ll be more fringe-average. Mayo and Callis note that the aforementioned bat speed yields “elite” exit velocity when Mountcastle squares up on a ball.
Brewers Claim Matt Dominguez, Designate Wei-Chung Wang
The Brewers announced that they have claimed third baseman Matt Dominguez off waivers from the Astros (Twitter links). To clear room on the 40-man roster, they’ve designated left-hander Wei-Chung Wang for assignment. Dominguez has been optioned to Triple-A Colorado Springs by the Brewers.
The Astros designated Dominguez for assignment last week in order to clear space on the 40-man roster for the promotion of top prospect Carlos Correa. In doing so, Houston effectively pulled the plug on one player for whom they very recently had high hopes in order to give a chance to a new young player. Dominguez was never as highly regarded a prospect as Correa, of course, but he frequented Top 100 prospect lists from 2009-12 as a member of both the Astros and Marlins organizations.
It’s easy to forget that Dominguez, who has spent parts of the past four seasons in the Majors, is still just 25 years of age. The Marlins first brought him to the Majors at just 21 years old and eventually traded him to Houston in the deal that sent Carlos Lee to Miami. Dominguez made a late-season appearance in Houston in 2012 and served as the team’s everyday third baseman in 2013-14.
That first season with an everyday gig proved to be his best to date, as he batted .241/.286/.403 with 21 homers. Despite the questionable OBP skills, Dominguez offered power and solid defense at third base, per DRS, producing 2.2 rWAR in his age-23 campaign. That’s a solid year, especially when considering his inexperience, but he took a step back in 2014, hitting just .215/.256/.330. That was concerning enough for Houston to bring in Luis Valbuena and Jed Lowrie in the winter, leaving Dominguez at Triple-A, where he continued to struggle (.251/.289/.371).
For the Brewers, though, they have little in the way of MLB-ready replacement options following the 2015 season when Aramis Ramirez retires. While Dominguez is far from a sure thing to provide them with above-average production at the hot corner — hence the DFA — he gives Milwaukee an experienced option with a good deal of team control remaining. Dominguez is all but a lock to be controllable through the 2019 season, as he’d need 110 days of MLB service to be eligible for free agency following the 2018 season, and there are only 111 days of the season remaining after tonight’s games.
With Ramirez’s name popping up in trade rumors as of late, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Dominguez eventually received an audition at the Major League level in the current season. That could theoretically push him into Super Two status and make him arbitration eligible this offseason, but his lack of recent offensive production would probably result in a relatively modest salary — especially when juxtaposed with Ramirez’s current $14MM price tag.
The 23-year-old Wang was a Rule 5 pick by the Brewers in 2013, and the team carried him on the roster through the entire 2014 season to avoid losing him, so the decision to designate him and again risk losing him was likely a tough pill to swallow. The Taiwanese southpaw pitched just 17 1/3 innings last year and yielded 21 runs, but given the fact that he was selected from the Pirates’ Rookie-level affiliate, those struggles shouldn’t be a stunning outcome. This season at Class-A Advanced, Wang has posted a 5.93 ERA with 6.7 K/9 against 3.4 BB/9 in 60 2/3 innings.
Phillies To Sign Top Picks Randolph, Kingery
1:30pm: The Phillies announced that they have reached agreement with a number of draft choices, including second-round pick Scott Kingery, as Todd Zolecki of MLB.com writes. Kingery’s deal is for the full value of his selection, netting him a ~$1.26MM bonus, according to MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo (on Twitter).
Kingery, a second baseman out of the University of Arizona, was tapped with the No. 48 overall pick. Prior to the draft, Kingery took some time to chat with MLBTR’s Zach Links for a comprehensive Q&A about his skill set and collegiate career. Kingery’s story is a unique one as he went from an undersized walk-on for the Wildcats to becoming one of their premier talents. The youngster told MLBTR that he received no scholarship offers coming out of high school and he did not envision a major league future for himself back in 2012.
“Definitely not. That’s not something that I had in mind going into my freshman year, especially as a walk-on player. I didn’t have a spot on the roster yet for sure, so at that point, I was just trying to find a spot on the team,” Kingery told Links.
Kingery is being advised by David Matranga of PSI Sports.
1:08pm: The Phillies have agreed to sign first-round selection Cornelius Randolph for the full slot value of $3,231,300, reports MLB.com’s Jim Callis (Twitter links). Selected 10th overall, Randolph was advised by and is now represented by Scott Boras. MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki tells Callis that the Phillies plan to move Randolph from the infield to the outfield, and Callis notes that Randolph’s bat “will play anywhere.”
A high school shortstop that had committed to Clemson, Randolph’s defense was questioned by many scouts heading into the draft. That did little to detract from the allure of his bat, however. Randolph ranked as the draft’s No. 11 prospect in the eyes of Fangraphs’ Kiley McDaniel, 19th on the Top 200 compiled by Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com, 20th on Baseball America’s Top 500 and 29th on the Top 100 of ESPN’s Keith Law.
McDaniel praised Randolph’s above-average hitting ability, raw power and strong arm when calling him “maybe the best of a deep crop in the Georgia prep ranks.” Mayo and Callis wrote that 6’1″, 190-pound Randolph “has the tools and approach to hit for power and average.” BA praised his bat speed and the ability to hit for all fields, noting that while scouts are “sure” that Randolph isn’t a shortstop, his home on the diamond could be in left field or at third base. ESPN feels that he profiles as a middle-of-the-order bat but cautions that there could be more swing-and-miss to his game than his mechanics would indicate at first glance.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
Pat Murphy To Manage Padres For Rest Of Season
The Padres announced this afternoon that they have named Pat Murphy their interim manager for the remainder of the 2015 season. Murphy had been serving as the team’s manager at Triple-A El Paso.
“Pat Murphy’s 30 years of experience coaching and managing, and his success at every level, stood out to me as I came to this decision,” said Padres GM A.J. Preller in the press release announcing the move. “His leadership ability, his respect in the clubhouse and his familiarity with our system will make this transition a smooth one for our players and coaching staff.”
The 56-year-old Murphy was in his third season as El Paso’s manager and spent the two years prior to that managing for San Diego’s A-Ball affiliate. He also has an extensive college coaching career, most notably with Arizona State. Murphy was long hailed as one of the best coaches in the college game, but his time at ASU wasn’t without controversy. Murphy was reportedly forced to resign in 2009 after allegations of academic fraud and recruiting violations marred his tenure as the team’s head coach.
Recently, the Brewers had interest in interviewing Murphy for a coaching position on the Major League staff, but the Padres did not grant Milwaukee permission to do so. Speculation emerged shortly thereafter that Murphy “had been made promises” by the organization. While that may or may not be the case, it does certainly seem likely that the Padres were at least considering Murphy as a possible coach, if not manager, in the event that Bud Black was let go. The Padres dismissed Black yesterday after parts of nine seasons on the job.
Tigers Sign First-Rounders Burrows, Stewart
The Tigers have agreed to terms with first-rounders Beau Burrows and Christin Stewart. Burrows himself tweeted that he is now officially a member of the Tigers organization after signing. Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reports (via Twitter) that he’ll receive the full slot value of $2,154,200 for the No. 22 overall pick (slot values via Baseball America). Meanwhile, MLB.com’s Jim Callis was the one to break the Stewart news, adding that he’ll receive the full slot value of $1,795,100 for his 35th overall selection (Twitter link).
Burrows, a high school right-hander out of Texas, ranked 42nd, 47th, 30th and 33rd on the respective draft rankings of Fangraphs’ Kiley McDaniel, ESPN’s Keith Law, Baseball America and MLB.com. Stewart’s respective ranks from that same group were 98th, 64th, 66th and 84th.
Burrows’ fastball velocity has jumped from the mid-90s in 2014 to the upper 90s in 2015, with BA saying he touched 97-98 mph and ESPN writing that he’s reached as high as 99. MLB.com notes that he throws as consistently hard as nearly any arm in this year’s draft class. However, Burrows is also about 6’0″ or 6’1″ and 200 pounds, making him somewhat undersized. McDaniel and BA both mention some concerns over Burrows’ delivery, though BA notes that some may look at Sonny Gray‘s success and be intrigued by a similarly sized/polished arm.
As for Stewart, he’s said to have very good bat speed and plus raw power. McDaniel gives his raw power a 65 grade on the 20-80 scale, though his game power comes in at an average rating of 50. MLB.com gives him 55 power and notes that fringy speed and arm strength make him a likely left fielder but notes that his home run power was on display more in 2015 than in previous years. BA calls him aggressive and mentions some swing-and-miss tendencies in addition to the aforementioned defensive question marks. All that said, both ESPN and MLB.com note that a team that loves his bat — as the Tigers must — could very well see a regular corner outfielder.
Burrows was selected with the Tigers’ natural pick based on their place in the 2014 standings, whereas Stewart was selected with the pick the Tigers received when Max Scherzer signed with the Nationals as a free agent.
Padres Expected To Name Interim Manager Today
The Padres are expected to name an interim manager that will hold the position through the end of the season today, reports Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union Tribune. More than likely, it’ll be an internal candidate, Lin adds. He hears that Triple-A manager Pat Murphy and bench coach Dave Roberts (who managed last night’s contest in Black’s absence) are the two likeliest candidates. First-year hitting coach Mark Kotsay has been discussed internally, he adds, but Kotsay is viewed as a less likely candidate.
Both Will Carroll of Fanduel and Keith Olbermann of ESPN heard yesterday that Murphy was on his way to San Diego, though Olbermann’s source indicated that it was possible that Murphy could become either the bench coach or the manager (Twitter links). Jon Heyman of CBS Sports writes that some view Murphy as the favorite to succeed Black, at least for the remainder of the season, and he will indeed be interviewed (or, perhaps, was already interviewed last night). Heyman writes that general manager A.J. Preller is said to want a manager with a fiery personality, and the Padres recently declined to let Murphy interview for a big league coaching position with the Brewers, perhaps indicating larger plans for him.
While Lin’s report makes Kotsay appear unlikely, Joel Sherman of the New York Post did tweet yesterday that the most common names he’s heard from executives outside of the Padres organization are Kotsay and Murphy. Scott Miller of FOX Sports Southwest and Bleacher Report added third base coach Glenn Hoffman’s name into the mix as well.
Pirates, First-Rounder Ke’Bryan Hayes Agree To Terms
The Pirates and No. 32 overall selection Ke’Bryan Hayes have agreed to terms, Howard Chen of My FOX Houston reports (Twitter link). Jon Heyman of CBS Sports reports (also via Twitter) that Hayes will receive the full slot value of $1,855,000.
Hayes, a high school third baseman, will forgo his commitment to Tennessee in order to try to follow in the footsteps of his father, Charlie, who spent parts of 14 seasons playing in the Majors (including one season with the Pirates). Heading into the draft, the younger Hayes was most aggressively ranked by Kiley McDaniel of Fangraphs and Keith Law of ESPN, both of whom placed him 24th among 2015 draft prospects. Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis of MLB.com ranked Hayes 44th on their Top 200 list, and Hayes placed 57th on Baseball America’s Top 500.
McDaniel notes that Hayes enjoyed a big spring and could develop into an everyday third baseman based on his promising tools, the strongest of which is a 65-grade arm (on the 20-80 scale). McDaniel projects average-or-better ratings across the board for Hayes’ tools, with the exception of speed. Law calls Hayes a “premium defender at third base with an outstanding approach and swing.” He adds that Hayes has an atypically high floor for a high school hitter. MLB.com notes that he lacks some first-step quickness and speed on the bases. BA notes that while he worked himself into great shape and a legitimate third base prospect, he’ll have to be careful with his conditioning to avoid moving to first base, where his bat wouldn’t play as well. BA lauds Hayes’ “excellent” work ethic and great feel for the game, adding that he’s one of the safest prep bats in this year’s class.
Chen spoke to both father and son about the draft and what it means to the pair. “Whenever I got that phone call, a burden just flew off my chest,” Ke’Bryan told Chen. “…The Pirates are a good baseball club and history shows it. Just to be able to wear the same major league ballclub team that my dad wore is really special and hopefully, I can get up there to the major leagues.”
With this agreement, the Bucs have both of their top picks locked in. Fellow first-rounder Kevin Newman officially signed yesterday, and a team announcement regarding Hayes — who was selected with the compensation pick awarded to Pittsburgh after losing Russell Martin to free agency — should follow in the near future.
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