All five of the White Sox's 2020 draft picks have agreed to contracts. Their second-round pick, right-handed pitcher Jared Kelley, signed for $3 million, which as expected was overslot. Fifth-round pick Bailey Horn, a left-handed pitcher, agreed to sign for $150,000, which as expected was underslot.
Kelley basically got late first-round money. By way of comparison, his bonus matches the money received by another high school pitcher, Nick Bitsko, who was selected 24th overall by the Tampa Bay Rays. Kelley was the No. 47 overall selection.
Here's the final rundown on Sox draft picks and the money they signed for:
First round: Garrett Crochet, LHP, $4,547,500 ($4,547,500 slot)
Second round: Jared Kelley, RHP, $3,000,000 ($1,582,000 slot)
Third round: Adisyn Coffey, RHP, $50,000 ($733,100 slot)
Fourth round: Kade Mechals, RHP, $10,000 ($517,400 slot)
Fifth round: Bailey Horn, LHP, $150,000 ($386,600)
All total, the Sox spent $7,757,500 of their bonus pool. That is $7,300 less than their maximum allowed total of $7,764,800.
Five players released
Major League Baseball ended its roster freeze Friday, and the Sox released these five players: Caleb Frare, Zach Putnam, Matt Skole, Matt Tomshaw and Ramon Torres.
Remember spring 2019? We used to think Frare could be a viable left-handed reliever out of the bullpen, but he forgot how to throw strikes and hasn't seen the bigs since posting a 10.13 ERA in five April appearances last year.
Putnam was a pretty good reliever for the Sox from 2014-17. He appeared in 130 games with the South Siders and posted a 9-6 record with a 2.71 ERA and six saves over that time span. But, he had Tommy John surgery in 2017 and has never made it back to the majors. It's possible he's thrown his last professional pitch.
Skole, a left-handed hitting first baseman, somehow managed to get added to the 25-man roster in both 2018 and 2019. He batted .217/.290/.277 with one home run in 31 games and 93 plate appearances over those two seasons with the Sox.
Tomshaw and Torres? Well, I don't have much to say about them. Tomshaw is a 30-year-old lefty pitcher who was decent at Double-A, but he got hit around every time he was promoted to Triple-A. Torres, a utility infielder, was last seen playing for the Kansas City Royals in 2018. There's no reason to believe he would have had any role in the Sox organization.
Showing posts with label Kade Mechals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kade Mechals. Show all posts
Monday, June 29, 2020
Sunday, June 21, 2020
White Sox have signed 2 of their 5 draft picks (but not the top 2)
Jim Callis, senior writer for MLB Pipeline, has been using his Twitter feed to keep the world updated on draft signings.
I'll spare you a lot of scrolling and just tell you that the White Sox have agreed on contracts with both third-round pick Adisyn Coffey and fourth-round pick Kade Mechals.
The Sox's top two picks, left-handed pitcher Garrett Crochet and right-handed pitcher Jared Kelley remain unsigned, although a tweet from MLB.com's Scott Merkin said Crochet would be in Chicago for a physical this week, and that contract could be wrapped up soon. Fifth-round pick Bailey Horn also remains unsigned.
Coffey, a right-handed pitcher and sometimes shortstop out of Wabash Valley Community College, signed with the Sox for $50,000, well below the slot value of $733,100.
Mechals, a right-handed pitcher out of Grand Canyon University, underwent Tommy John surgery in May, so he had no leverage in contract negotiations. He got the standard rate that you would normally assign to a college senior who was selected on the second day of the draft: $10,000. In case you were wondering, slot rate is $517,400.
So, if you combine the savings on these two underslot deals for Coffey and Mechals, you get $1,190,500 that the Sox can put toward signing Kelley for first-round money.
The slot value for Crochet is $4,547,000. The slot value for Kelley is $1,582,000. I'm expecting Crochet to get right at that figure, or somewhere in the neighborhood.
Assuming Crochet signs at slot, the Sox would have $3,157,300 remaining in their draft pool with which to sign Kelley and Horn. With the 5 percent overage, the Sox can spend as much as $3,545,540 before they would have to surrender future draft picks.
The slot value on Horn is $386,600. He doesn't have a lot of leverage here as a fifth-round pick, so expect most of that $3 million-plus to go to Kelley, who most people believe was a first-round talent who slid to the second round because of signability issues.
I'll spare you a lot of scrolling and just tell you that the White Sox have agreed on contracts with both third-round pick Adisyn Coffey and fourth-round pick Kade Mechals.
The Sox's top two picks, left-handed pitcher Garrett Crochet and right-handed pitcher Jared Kelley remain unsigned, although a tweet from MLB.com's Scott Merkin said Crochet would be in Chicago for a physical this week, and that contract could be wrapped up soon. Fifth-round pick Bailey Horn also remains unsigned.
Coffey, a right-handed pitcher and sometimes shortstop out of Wabash Valley Community College, signed with the Sox for $50,000, well below the slot value of $733,100.
Mechals, a right-handed pitcher out of Grand Canyon University, underwent Tommy John surgery in May, so he had no leverage in contract negotiations. He got the standard rate that you would normally assign to a college senior who was selected on the second day of the draft: $10,000. In case you were wondering, slot rate is $517,400.
So, if you combine the savings on these two underslot deals for Coffey and Mechals, you get $1,190,500 that the Sox can put toward signing Kelley for first-round money.
The slot value for Crochet is $4,547,000. The slot value for Kelley is $1,582,000. I'm expecting Crochet to get right at that figure, or somewhere in the neighborhood.
Assuming Crochet signs at slot, the Sox would have $3,157,300 remaining in their draft pool with which to sign Kelley and Horn. With the 5 percent overage, the Sox can spend as much as $3,545,540 before they would have to surrender future draft picks.
The slot value on Horn is $386,600. He doesn't have a lot of leverage here as a fifth-round pick, so expect most of that $3 million-plus to go to Kelley, who most people believe was a first-round talent who slid to the second round because of signability issues.
Saturday, June 13, 2020
White Sox end up with two of the top 18 prospects in 2020 MLB Draft
There are two ways to look at the five pitchers the White Sox selected in the 2020 MLB Draft. Glass half full: They got two of the top 18 prospects in the draft. Glass half empty: Well, those two guys better pan out, because those other three guys are nothing special.
Believe it or not, the highest-rated player the Sox took in this draft was the guy they took in the *second* round. First-round pick Garrett Crochet was rated 18th overall by MLB Pipeline, while second-round pick Jared Kelley was ranked as the 12th-best prospect in the draft.
How did this happen? Well, let's go over it.
Kelley, a 6-foot-4, 225-pound right-handed pitcher out of Refugio High School in Texas, was considered the best high school arm in the draft. He can run his fastball up there in the high 90s, and he already has a changeup that he can use in games. The breaking ball is a work in progress, but this is a kid who has two pitches he can get outs with from day one.
Before the coronavirus ended high school baseball seasons everywhere, Kelley worked 12 innings this spring without allowing a hit. He struck out 34 batters and was named Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year.
So, how in the hell did the No. 12 prospect in the draft fall all the way to the Sox at pick No. 47? You could argue it's because of Kelley's lack of a slider, but the real reason is teams didn't think he would sign a contract. Kelley is committed to the University of Texas, and apparently, most clubs believed he intended to honor that commitment.
Not so fast, because the Sox are going to pay an overslot deal to sign him, and I'm sure they would not have chosen him had they not determined he was amenable to signing.
For those unfamiliar with the process, the Sox had a pool total of $7,764,800 that they could spend on their five draft picks. The No. 11 pick was slotted at $4,547,500, the No. 47 pick at $1,580,200 and so on.
The Sox might very well pay Crochet, the No. 11 overall pick, that $4,547,500. However, there's no question they are going to pay Kelley more than $1,580,200 to sign with them.
In fact, it's quite likely the Sox will pay most of that $7,764,800 on their first two picks. The other three guys? They will take whatever is left, and the Sox quite intentionally chose guys who aren't in position to command much:
Third round: Adisyn Coffey, RHP, Wabash Valley CC
Fourth round: Kade Mechals, RHP, Grand Canyon University
Fifth round: Bailey Horn, LHP, Auburn University
Coffey and Mechals weren't even ranked among the top 500 prospects in the draft. Mechals and Horn have already had Tommy John surgery. You can see how the Sox probably won't need much money to get these guys to sign on the dotted line.
Coffey is 21 years old, old for a junior college player, and he was slated to head to the University of Louisville, where he was going to pitch in the bullpen. But hey, he throws 95 mph and has a slider. Maybe that two-pitch mix will some day amount to something.
Mechals, a college senior, is a 5-foot-11 sinker-slider righty who is lauded for his command and pitchability. He had Tommy John surgery in May, so see you sometime in late 2021. Odds are, Mechals will be a guy who can provide competent innings as organizational filler in Triple-A Charlotte or Double-A Birmingham. A big-league career would be a pleasant surprise.
Horn, a 6-foot-2 lefty, is healthy after missing the 2018 season with Tommy John surgery. He made four starts at Auburn before the pandemic this spring, and he struck out 27 batters against five walks over 17.1 innings. The fastball sits at 92-93 mph. The slider is his second-best pitch, followed by his change. I've heard his curveball described as "meh."
In case you were wondering, the slot values for the third through fifth rounds are as follows:
Third round: $733,100
Fourth round: $517, 400
Fifth round: $386,600
I'm guessing those last three guys sign for below these figures, so that the first two guys -- especially Kelley -- can sign above theirs. Maybe Horn has a case to get the slot value, but Coffey and Mechals will definitely be below slot.
Believe it or not, the highest-rated player the Sox took in this draft was the guy they took in the *second* round. First-round pick Garrett Crochet was rated 18th overall by MLB Pipeline, while second-round pick Jared Kelley was ranked as the 12th-best prospect in the draft.
How did this happen? Well, let's go over it.
Kelley, a 6-foot-4, 225-pound right-handed pitcher out of Refugio High School in Texas, was considered the best high school arm in the draft. He can run his fastball up there in the high 90s, and he already has a changeup that he can use in games. The breaking ball is a work in progress, but this is a kid who has two pitches he can get outs with from day one.
Before the coronavirus ended high school baseball seasons everywhere, Kelley worked 12 innings this spring without allowing a hit. He struck out 34 batters and was named Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year.
So, how in the hell did the No. 12 prospect in the draft fall all the way to the Sox at pick No. 47? You could argue it's because of Kelley's lack of a slider, but the real reason is teams didn't think he would sign a contract. Kelley is committed to the University of Texas, and apparently, most clubs believed he intended to honor that commitment.
Not so fast, because the Sox are going to pay an overslot deal to sign him, and I'm sure they would not have chosen him had they not determined he was amenable to signing.
For those unfamiliar with the process, the Sox had a pool total of $7,764,800 that they could spend on their five draft picks. The No. 11 pick was slotted at $4,547,500, the No. 47 pick at $1,580,200 and so on.
The Sox might very well pay Crochet, the No. 11 overall pick, that $4,547,500. However, there's no question they are going to pay Kelley more than $1,580,200 to sign with them.
In fact, it's quite likely the Sox will pay most of that $7,764,800 on their first two picks. The other three guys? They will take whatever is left, and the Sox quite intentionally chose guys who aren't in position to command much:
Third round: Adisyn Coffey, RHP, Wabash Valley CC
Fourth round: Kade Mechals, RHP, Grand Canyon University
Fifth round: Bailey Horn, LHP, Auburn University
Coffey and Mechals weren't even ranked among the top 500 prospects in the draft. Mechals and Horn have already had Tommy John surgery. You can see how the Sox probably won't need much money to get these guys to sign on the dotted line.
Coffey is 21 years old, old for a junior college player, and he was slated to head to the University of Louisville, where he was going to pitch in the bullpen. But hey, he throws 95 mph and has a slider. Maybe that two-pitch mix will some day amount to something.
Mechals, a college senior, is a 5-foot-11 sinker-slider righty who is lauded for his command and pitchability. He had Tommy John surgery in May, so see you sometime in late 2021. Odds are, Mechals will be a guy who can provide competent innings as organizational filler in Triple-A Charlotte or Double-A Birmingham. A big-league career would be a pleasant surprise.
Horn, a 6-foot-2 lefty, is healthy after missing the 2018 season with Tommy John surgery. He made four starts at Auburn before the pandemic this spring, and he struck out 27 batters against five walks over 17.1 innings. The fastball sits at 92-93 mph. The slider is his second-best pitch, followed by his change. I've heard his curveball described as "meh."
In case you were wondering, the slot values for the third through fifth rounds are as follows:
Third round: $733,100
Fourth round: $517, 400
Fifth round: $386,600
I'm guessing those last three guys sign for below these figures, so that the first two guys -- especially Kelley -- can sign above theirs. Maybe Horn has a case to get the slot value, but Coffey and Mechals will definitely be below slot.
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