PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – Now that the Pirates have selected players in 11 of their allotted 21 slots, it's the question of signability. Praised for the aggressiveness of their draft on Monday, especially those picks in the second and third rounds.
Will they become Pirates?
"We are confident, but not done," said Pirates general manager Ben Cherington following day two of the MLB Draft. "We have some work to do there. We took those guys with a level of confidence and optimism that we can reach agreement, but we are not done."
Cherington said after drafting Louisville catcher Henry Davis first overall Sunday, they sat down and mapped out a strategy with the remaining players. A pair, high school LHP Anthony Solometo and high school SS/RHP Bubba Chandler, were in the first round of various mock drafts. Meaning they might have been skipped over for fear of signing and likely would require an over slot payment.
Chandler along with second round competitive balance pick Lonnie White, Junior not only have commitments to college baseball. Each also planning to play college football. White at his dream school, Penn State and Chandler as a quarterback at Clemson, their previous QB just went number one in the NFL Draft.
"It's probably less about trying to sell baseball and more just finding out how important baseball is to those guys," Cherington said. "We feel like the guys we took really want to play baseball. They want to be Pirates. Now we will do everything we can to make them Pirates."
The first four picks Monday were high school players, adding in fourth rounder, RHP Owen Kellington from Vermont. Although you could argue with Kellington, not in any top 250 lists before the draft, they could likely save some money there.
From round five through ten it was all college players, a couple of them seniors likely with better signability due to fewer options going forward.
There is a new wrinkle this year. Players can start making money in college this coming season on their name and image likeness. There are no guarantees how much that works out to. It will vary between schools and sports. Cherington really unsure of its impact as well.
"I think it's a good question and I don't know the answer," Cherington said of the NIL. "I know it's a definitely a topic of conversation amongst players and agents. I'm not in that conversation as much. I don't know for sure. I know it's a new thing we are all navigating."
This is where all the information gathered over the last few days, weeks, months, maybe years will really pay off. The only player Cherington met with in person is White, but scouts and special assistants have cultivated relationships over the last few weeks to months with hundreds of players and their families. Now time to close the deal.
"We take players with enough information to give us some confidence that we can get something done," Cherington said. "It's just phone calls and open dialogue with the players, the families, with advisors leading into the draft. Then after the draft starts, just keep the phone lines open and share information."
"From the team side obviously you want to have as much information as you can so you can have some confidence about our chances to sign a player. At the same time, we want the players to know as much as they can too. It's their lives. It's their careers. We want them to feel good about where it lands for them and what direction they are going."
"I don't know how to do that other than just to share information. Be honest and ask for honestly in return. Usually that leads you to a good spot."
