2014 Post Draft - News, Signings & Information

[mabrowndog]

21st-rounder Ian Rice has played 13 games for the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape League. In 25 PA he's hitting .190/.261/.286/.547 with 3 singles, 2 doubles, 2 walks, 2 bunts and 7 K. Southeastern Louisiana's Jameson Fisher is getting the bulk of the playing time behind the dish, so Rice is splitting backup duties with Casey Schroeder of Polk State (Lakeland FL).
 
He had a nice game against Brewster this past Sunday, going 2-for-2 with one of his walks and both doubles. But he's hitless in 7 trips since.

 

[mabrowndog]

Alex Speier @alexspeier  ·  1h

On day Mookie Betts debuts, the Red Sox have reached agreement w/two-sport high-ceiling HS draftee from Tenn, RHP Kevin Steen (9th rd).
 
Alex Speier @alexspeier  ·  1h

Steen's agreement isn't final, pending standard physical. But, if it goes through, he's one of 2 Sox signees a from top 10 rds to get >slot.

 

[mabrowndog]

Here's where SoxProspects has the latest crop of draftees in their Top 60 rankings as of 6/27:
 
13. Michael Chavis, SS (#1)
15. Michael Kopech, RHP (#1s)
20. Sam Travis, 1B (#2)
27. Jake Cosart, RHP (#3)
49. Karsten Whitson, RHP (#11)
54. Josh Ockimey, 1B (#5)

 

[mabrowndog]

Hopefully the first of thousands more while wearing the laundry...
 

 

[mabrowndog]

* Per Baseball America, 26th-rounder Ryan Harris has officially signed.
 
* Boston's 8th-rounder is 2-for-2 for the GCL Sox so far today with an RBI single, RBI double and a run scored.

Retweeted by Ben Moore
Ryan Blanchard ‏@Blanchy12 3h
Shout out to my best friend making his pro ball debut today! #dowork @benmoore_7

 
* 9th-rounder Kevin Steen will fly to Boston tomorrow to begin his Sox career.

Kevin Steen Jr ‏@swaggyks 3h
Last day in the ridge... I'm on a mission I will see y'all when it's accomplished!!

 

[mabrowndog]

govolsxtra.com
 

 
Tennessee commitment Kevin Steen is going to accept a signing bonus of $255,000 from the Boston Red Sox and bypass playing college baseball, according to a report from govolsxtra.com - a partner of 247Sports. Steen was selected in the ninth round, and his offer is contingent on passing a physical Tuesday.
 
“I’ve wanted to be a Vol forever and I really wanted to go to Tennessee, but then I found out I could go pro right out of high school,” Steen told reporter Mike Blackerby. “It’s really exciting."

 
That's $112,400 over slot and leaves the Sox $13,000 under their standard cap allotments to the 10 players signed in the first 10 rounds whose bonuses are known. We're still waiting on Reed Reilly's bonus.
 
Relative to their total cap, they've got $176,500 to play with (Reilly's slot is $163,500). Including the 5% overage would give them $495,165 to spend on bonuses, though the club would owe about $239k to MLB as part of the 75% tax on the overage.
 
In addition to Reilly, it's likely that Harris and probably Beeks were paid over-slot to sign. I'm thinking it's something like $220k for Reilly, $175k for Harris and $130k for Beeks, which would be $161,500 over slot for those three. That would still leave them around $333,000 to spend on the two draft-and-follows (Ian Rice, Gabe Klobosits) or one of high school kids who haven't given the Sox a flat-out "no" yet. (Case Rolen, Luis Alvarado).
 
I really don't think they have enough to sway either of the youngsters, so signing post-HSers Rice & Klobosits (plus TJ surgery patient Josh Pennington, who'll clearly come in under slot) would mean 33 of Boston's 41 draft picks are in the system. And that would be pretty damned impressive and efficient. But even if they don't sign anyone else besides Pennington, they've still brought in a great haul.

 

[mabrowndog]

Per CanadianBaseballNetwork.com, 14th-rounder Jordan Procyshen has signed for $50,000.

 

[mabrowndog]

21st-rounder Ian Rice has played 13 games for the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape League. In 25 PA he's hitting .190/.261/.286/.547 with 3 singles, 2 doubles, 2 walks, 2 bunts and 7 K. Southeastern Louisiana's Jameson Fisher is getting the bulk of the playing time behind the dish, so Rice is splitting backup duties with Casey Schroeder of Polk State (Lakeland FL).
 
He had a nice game against Brewster this past Sunday, going 2-for-2 with one of his walks and both doubles. But he's hitless in 7 trips since.

 
Well, well, well...
 
Cotuit Kettleers ‏@CotuitKettleers 6h
ONE HOME RUN IS NOT ENOUGH! Ian Rice with a 3-run shot to make it 5-0.

 

[mabrowndog]

Per the Sox' transactions log, Boston has officially signed 8th-rounder Reed Reilly.

 

[soxhop411]

Chris Cotillo ‏@ChrisCotillo  3m
Source: #RedSox sign 7th-rdr Reid Reilly for $107,500. That is $56K under slot. Tracker: http://www.mlbdailydish.com/2014/6/9/5793788/2014-mlb-draft-draft-signings-tracker …

 

[Scoots McBoots]

How often is it that teams sign their first 21 picks?  Seems impressive.

 

[mabrowndog]

DRAFT CAP UPDATE (7/01, 5:00 pm)
 
[tablegrid=]# of Confirmed Signings 30 # of Confirmed Bonuses 17 Days Until Signing Deadline 17 Total Slot Value of Signings (1st ten rounds) $6,373,300 Actual Bonuses Paid to Signings (1st ten rounds) $6,154,300 Net +/- in Rounds 1 thru 10 -$219,000 Net +/- in Rounds 11 thru 40 $150,000 Net +/- Overall -$69,000 Net % Relative to Signed Slots (1st ten rounds) -3.4% Net % Relative to Signed Slots (all rounds) -0.99% Net % Relative to Total Cap ($6,373,300) -1.08% Projected Tax on Current Overage $0 Projected Loss of Draft Picks None Remaining Cap Space $69,000 Remaining Budget Assuming 5% Spending Above Cap $387,665 [/tablegrid]
 
Of their 30 picks beyond round 10, the Sox have signed 19. Of that figure, we have bonus information on just 6 players. Of the remaining 13, Reilly was one of 5 I saw as having a decent chance of demanding over-slot money.
 
I'm really surprised to see they're not only under slot with him, but by a considerable amount. It remains to be seen what sort of bonuses Beeks, Fisher and Harris received, and how much the Sox went over the $100,000 max for each.
 
If the Sox spend right up to the 5% overage limit (the highest they can go without losing any draft picks), they'd owe $239,000 in tax penalties to MLB.

 

[mabrowndog]

Kevin Steen Jr ‏@swaggyks 16m
Me and big bro!
 

 

[soxhop411]

Jim Callis ‏@jimcallisMLB  7s
Late-rd bonus I hadn't noticed before: @RedSox 20th-rder Devon Fisher got $300k. Virginia HS C, defense > bat, chance for power. @MLBDraft

 

[mabrowndog]

That puts the Sox $131,000 over the cap. They'll pay at least $98,250 in tax (pending other bonuses), and they can spend another $187,665 over slot without losing any draft picks.
 
Bonuses for Beeks and Harris (BA #125 & 226 respectively) still aren't known. 29th-rounder Josh Pennington (BA #401, just had TJ surgery) is expected to sign, but should come in under slot.
 
Ian Rice (21st rd, BA #303), Gabe Klobosits (25th), Case Rolen (32nd) & Luis Alvarado (33rd, BA #493) are the only remaining unsigned players who haven't publicly opted for school.
 
Unless there's a late push for Rice, I really think they're done once Pennington inks a deal.

 

[mabrowndog]

Per the Sox transactions log, LHP Michael Gunn (16th), SS Jeremy Rivera (17th) and RHP Taylor Nunez (27th) are now officially signed.

 

[mabrowndog]

Jonathan Singer @Jonathan_Singer

11th round pick Karsten Whitson is set to make his pro debut tomorrow as the starter for the @LowellSpinners.

 

[JakeRae]

That puts the Sox $131,000 over the cap. They'll pay at least $98,250 in tax (pending other bonuses), and they can spend another $187,665 over slot without losing any draft picks.
 
Bonuses for Beeks and Harris (BA #125 & 226 respectively) still aren't known. 29th-rounder Josh Pennington (BA #401, just had TJ surgery) is expected to sign, but should come in under slot.
 
Ian Rice (21st rd, BA #303), Gabe Klobosits (25th), Case Rolen (32nd) & Luis Alvarado (33rd, BA #493) are the only remaining unsigned players who haven't publicly opted for school.
 
Unless there's a late push for Rice, I really think they're done once Pennington inks a deal.

Beeks and Harris probably push them to their spending limit, so any late signings will likely be players who bite at a $100,000 or less offer. That's definitely possible for any of the remaining players though as none are highly rated enough that they should definitely walk away from $100,000.

 

[mabrowndog]

Lowell Spinners @LowellSpinners

Congratulations to Cole Sturgeon and Jason Garcia, promoted to the @GreenvilleDrive. Sturgeon first 2014 Draft Pick to reach Greenville.

 

[mabrowndog]

Lowell Spinners @LowellSpinners  ·  1h

Will want to be up early for the 11am start tomorrow... Kevin McAvoy (@k_mcavoy4) is set to make his pro debut against @VTLakeMonsters.

 

[mabrowndog]

The signing of 9th-rounder Kevin Steen is now official.

 

[mabrowndog]

Per Josh Pennington's twitter account, he'll be getting his stitches out tonight. It's been 2 weeks since he underwent Tommy John surgery.
 
In earlier tweets right after being drafted, he stated he'd begin his pro career after the procedure. The Sox have 10 days remaining in the signing period to get a deal finalized.

 

[mabrowndog]

Over the holiday weekend in the College Baseball thread, I posted about the tragic death of Texas Tech catcher Elliot Richoux.
 
Turns out he was a teammate of Sox' 37th-rounder Hector Lorenzana when both were at Howard College before transferring to their respective Big 12 schools. From Hector's twitter account:
 

 
Retweeted by Hector Lorenzana
Jordan Allen @jordan_allen1  ·  Jul 4
RIP @erichoux Doesn't seem real. Honored to say I hit in the lineup behind you. I know we all gained a guardian angel today #HawksFlyForever
 
Retweeted by Hector Lorenzana
Colt Bickerstaff @ColtBick5  ·  Jul 4
Having trouble taking this all in. R.I.P @erichoux you will definitely be missed brother.
 
Retweeted by Hector Lorenzana
Clayton Crum @ClaytonCrum47  ·  Jul 4
Can't believe this news. Heaven gained an Angel today. R.I.P E...#HawksFly
 
Hector Lorenzana @Heczana12  ·  7h

Can't stop thinking about you brother! I'm going to miss you so much! Love you E...
 
Hector Lorenzana @Heczana12  ·  35m

Even though your gone we still a team! RIP E http://instagram.com/p/qO6iWZLzcC/ 
 

 

 

[mabrowndog]

Nothing official yet, but the wheels appear in motion for the Sox to get their 29th-rounder under contract before the signing deadline (5 pm Friday):
 

Josh Pennington @J_Penns5  ·  Jul 11

It's been the toughest and most stressful couple months of my life but I can't wait to get to Ft. Meyers it's such a relief
 

Josh Pennington @J_Penns5  ·  Jul 11

My mom cried when I told her I won't be home till September
 
Josh Pennington @J_Penns5  ·  4h

Finally here
 
Josh Pennington @J_Penns5  ·  3h

Places to eat is the number 1 thing I need to find out


 
 

 

[mabrowndog]

Catching up with some of the other unsigned Sox picks who are playing summer ball:
 
* 21st-rounder Ian Rice (C ) is with the Cotuit (MA) Kettleers of the Cape Cod Baseball League. Stats (thru July 11): 21 G, 53 PA, 12 H, 4 DB, 1 HR, 6 BB, 1 HBP, 14 K, 3 SH, 10 R, 10 RBI, .279/.380/.442/.722
 
* 25th-rounder Gabe Klobosits (RHP) is with the Sky Sox of the Houston (TX)-based Karl Young College Baseball League. Stats (thru July 3): 13.3 IP, 6 ER, 7 H, 6 BB, 2 HBP, 11 K, 3.16 ERA, .977 WHIP, .146 BAA.
 
* 28th-rounder David Peterson (LHP) is with the Medford (OR) Rogues of the West Coast Baseball League. Stats (thru July 10): 6 G, 5 GS, 4-0 W-L, 28.1 IP, 28 H, 11 BB, 18 K, 2.54 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, .277/.355/.315/.670 opp line. On Thursday he tossed 6.1 shutout innings (4 H, 4 BB, 4 K).
 
* 35th-rounder Ross Puskarich (3B) is with the Ohio Warhawks, a nationally-ranked 18U team in the American Amateur Baseball Congress, based in Springfield (OH). Warhawks alumni include Mike Napoli & A.J. Pierzynski. Last week, they finished 3rd among 8 teams at the Gates Field World Series, an invitational tournament in Salt Lake City. They've got another week of games (including the Pastime 18U National Championship in Indianapolis, which begins Wednesday) before opening play at the AABC Eastern Regionals in Cincinnati on July 21. Should they advance, they'd move on to the Connie Mack World Series beginning August 1 in Farmington, New Mexico. No stats available.
 
* 36th-rounder Bradley Wilpon (RHP) is with the Pittsfield (MA) Suns of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League. Stats (thru July 11): 5 G, 3 GS, 18.1 IP, 12 ER, 23 H, 10 BB, 1 HBP, 6 K, 5.89 ERA, 1.80 WHIP, .313 BAA.

 

[soxhop411]

Chris Cotillo ‏@ChrisCotillo  14s
#RedSox sign 29th-rounder Josh Pennington for $90K bonus. Could be a late draft steal coming off Tommy John surgery.

 

[Byrdbrain]

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   Josh Pennington ‏@J_Penns5  1h
   Officially just signed and I'm now a member of the Boston Red Soxs!!!
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   3:02 PM - 17 Jul 2014 · Details
   
   
   
   
   
   
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    Retweeted by Chris Hatfield
   
   
   Henry Owens ‏@______H______O  52m
   @J_Penns5 Sox* good start meat
   
   
    
    
   
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[Snodgrass'Muff]

Henry Owens just made my untouchable list.

 

[mabrowndog]

Today's the final day of the signing period, which ends at 5 pm. I'd be really surprised if the Sox bring aboard any of the 10 remaining unsigned draft picks, but stranger things have happened. They've still got ~$187k to shell out without losing any draft picks, though they'd have to pay an additional 75% of that to the league in taxes. I just don't think it's going to be enough to sway any of those picks from heading/returning to college.
 
Pennington's deal doesn't alter Boston's slot/cap/tax matrix, so here's where things stand:
 
DRAFT CAP UPDATE (7/18, 10:00 am)
 
[tablegrid=]# of Confirmed Signings 31 # of Confirmed Bonuses 19 Days Until Signing Deadline 1 Total Slot Value of Signings (1st ten rounds) $6,373,300 Actual Bonuses Paid to Signings (1st ten rounds) $6,154,300 Net +/- in Rounds 1 thru 10 -$219,000 Net +/- in Rounds 11 thru 40 $350,000 Net +/- Overall +$131,000 Net % Relative to Signed Slots (1st ten rounds) -3.4% Net % Relative to Signed Slots (all rounds) +1.83% Net % Relative to Total Cap ($6,373,300) +2.06% Projected Tax on Current Overage $98,250 Projected Loss of Draft Picks None Remaining Cap Space $0 Remaining Budget Assuming 5% Spending Above Cap $187,665 [/tablegrid]

 

[soxhop411]

Draft related,

 
The Astros did not sign first-round pick Brady Aiken, fifth-rounder Jacob Nix or 21st-rounderMac Marshall, reports MLB.com’s Jim Callis (on Twitter). The Astros will receive the No. 2 pick in next year’s draft, Callis adds, meaning that Houston did at least offer Aiken 40 percent of his slot value ($3,168,840), which Aiken did not accept.
 

 

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2014/07/astros-fail-to-sign-aiken-nix-marshall.html
 
 
Ben Badler ‏@BenBadler  2m
Downstream, this hurts teams like the Cubs, Rangers, and others in the mix for a top five pick next year. Everyone gets bumped down.

 

[Curll]

Crazy. Not sure if this is smart, dumb, and if so, which party is what.
 
I hope Aiken makes it to the bigs eventually, but the whole story is made to be a book/movie. 

 

[soxhop411]

Evan Drellich ‏@EvanDrellich  1m
“We tried to engage Casey Close three times today … there was no interest” — GM Jeff Luhnow tells the Chronicle
 
MLBPA might release a statement 
 
Evan Drellich ‏@EvanDrellich  4m
Source: The Astros’ final offer to Brady Aiken was $5 million.

 

[singaporesoxfan]

Nix might have a grievance if he was willing to accept the Astros' offer but that offer was conditional on Aiken accepting a lower offer - isn't that against the rules?

 

[PaulinMyrBch]

What I don't understand was Nix 1.5m coming from the difference between the slot of 7.9m and the agreed deal of 6.5m, or was it coming from the difference between the post-physical offers in the 3m+ range, which was less than 1.5m of the original offer?

Edit: I know the first gap is 1.4, but I figure there was 100k somewhere else.

If it's the first gap, Nix has a legit issue. If it's the second, he was agreeing to money they had not yet freed up and he knew it.

 

[Byrdbrain]

It is the first one.
 
http://www.baseballamerica.com/draft/astros-fail-to-sign-aiken/

 

[DavidTai]

I don't get what the heck the Astros were thinking there. They agreed to it, then tried to change it after a physical.
 
Maybe so, but isn't it worth the extra three million to -keep- the other two players they had agreed with?

 

[mabrowndog]

I don't get what the heck the Astros were thinking there. They agreed to it, then tried to change it after a physical.
 
Maybe so, but isn't it worth the extra three million to -keep- the other two players they had agreed with?

 
That's really the issue. They small-marketed themselves to death by playing the Larry Lucchino El Cheapo card.
 
As I noted in the MLB forum, of the 315 picks made in the first 10 rounds (including compensatory and supplemental picks), only 6 went unsigned. The Astros had two of those. It's beyond inexcusable.

 

[mabrowndog]

In other draft news...
 
Jane Lee ‏@JaneMLB 13s
The A's signed 25 of their 40 Draft selections. All 4 catchers they drafted went unsigned.

 

[PaulinMyrBch]

It is the first one.
 
http://www.baseballamerica.com/draft/astros-fail-to-sign-aiken/

That makes sense. Plus the money works, 1.4 difference plus the 100k that it's allotted for 10th round or higher.

 

[Mike F]

In other draft news...
 
Jane Lee ‏@JaneMLB [URL="https://twitter.com/JaneMLB/status/490322192601604097

https://twitter.com/JaneMLB/status/490322192601604097"]13s

link to tweet[/url]
The A's signed 25 of their 40 Draft selections. All 4 catchers they drafted went unsigned.
Clearly Mild Billy is anticipating garnering one or two current Sox ml catchers about two years down the road.

 

[Snodgrass'Muff]

In the wake of Houston's screw up, BA has an article detailing the history of first rounders who haven't signed.  I'm not sure if it's a subscriber only article, so apologies if there is a pay wall.  I'll keep the quotes to a minimum.
 

Modern draft history was made Friday when No. 1 overall pick Brady Aiken did not come to terms with the Astros, marking the first time since 1983 that the first overall pick in the draft did not sign.
After a stretch from 2003-2007 when only one first-round pick did not sign (Wade Townsend; 2004) in five drafts, this marks the seventh straight season that at least one first-round pick did not agree to terms, spanning back to the 2008 draft. This marks the longest streak of unsigned first-rounders in draft history.

 

The range of outcomes for the unsigned pitchers is vast with many player who improved their draft stock, Mark Appel and Gerrit Cole, who both become No. 1 overall picks. But there are also quite a few that saw their draft stock fall, with two of those recent examples in Karsten Whitsonand Dylan Covey, the top unsigned prep arms from the 2010 class. Whitson, who bypassed more than $2 million, went in the 11th round last month and signed for $100,000. Covey, who found out he had diabetes following his post-draft physical after being drafted No. 14 overall, signed for $370,000 in the fourth round last year.

 

On the extreme end of negative outcomes is Matt Harrington, who turned down nearly $5 million as the seventh overall pick in 2000 and was drafted four more times without agreeing to a contract. Of the 17 pitchers who re-entered the draft (excluding Cal State Fullerton righthanderPhil Bickford and Loux, who signed as a free agent), nine again went in the first round, equating to 53 percent of the sample.

 

The only other times that the No. 1 pick went unsigned was in 1983 and 1971, and both went in the same spot in subsequent drafts. Tim Belcher (1983) then went first overall in the January phase of the 1984 draft. Danny Goodwin (1971) became the top pick again in 1975 after a college career at Southern University.

 
http://www.baseballamerica.com/draft/modern-history-unsigned-first-rounders/