Less Deadline Drama Benefits All In Draft

Once upon a time, the draft was just half the battle.

- John Manuel

Then came the hard part—signing the players.

Just read Allan Simpson’s epic Ultimate Draft Book. It’s six pounds worth of stories about the draft, and roughly three of those pounds seem to detail stories of difficult signings of draft picks.

That’s no longer the case. Just as every draft since 2012 has had a signing deadline, this year’s draft has one, too—and this year it’s earlier than ever on July 7. That was just after Baseball America went to press, and in the past, we would have stopped the presses, held the issue up a day or two and made sure to get all the signings in print.

What we do know is the signings drama this year came down to how much No. 2 overall pick Hunter Greene would get, and if he would become the third $7 million signee of this class, joining No. 4 overall pick Brendan McKay (Rays) and No. 5 pick Kyle Wright (Braves).

Now, we know that all the signings are available at baseballamerica.com/draftdb. And these days, the draft signings drama really happens before and during the draft, when teams negotiate with players and their agents to make sure they will sign—within parameters set in the Collective Bargaining Agreement—before the players are drafted.

Last year, just two players in the first 10 rounds failed to sign, and signs point to a similar result in 2017. However, there was late drama when the Rays failed to sign supplemental first-rounder Drew Rasmussen, taken 31st overall out of Oregon State. It was unclear at press time if Rasmussen would be declared a free agent; the Rays had time to offer him the minimum 60 percent of slot to get a compensation pick in the 2018 draft.