USF Baseball and the Draft

[Brad]

So, a little story.  After coaching small college baseball my dad had a scouting career working for the White Sox, Indians, Diamondbacks, A's and "the Bureau" over a number of years.  I can't remember exactly what year it was but I was still at USF which means likely mid 80s.  I met him at the old Red for a game.  I sat in the stands and listened to scout-speak for a while.  You hear things like "that kid couldn't hit a curve ball with an ironing board" or "that kid couldn't catch a bear in a telephone booth" and so on...scouts are pretty funny.  Then he says he has to go talk to a guy for a minute and asked if I wanted to go.  I was a pretty quiet guy so I am sure my dad did not expect me to do something stupid, but he goes on to talk to this player and asks him how much he needed to sign.  I just remember, as a college student, this guy being offered six figures, and it was escalating.  The kid was shrugging shoulders and saying he didn't know and the offer would go up another 25 or 50K, and it kept going up.  I was like "Dude, take the freakin' money!".   Finally, my dad said, "hey, we want to draft you, but not if you won't tell me your price".  They didn't want to waste the pick of course.  Finally, they agreed on a very large number.  But I stood there in awe about the simplicity (back then) of the negotiation.  I also later wondered how and why I chose the academic path with a dad that was a professional player, college coach and pro scout.  Boy did I take the wrong turn!  At least that's what I thought until I became a message board moderator.

[JTrue]

31 minutes ago, Brad said:

So, a little story.  After coaching small college baseball my dad had a scouting career working for the White Sox, Indians, Diamondbacks, A's and "the Bureau" over a number of years.  I can't remember exactly what year it was but I was still at USF which means likely mid 80s.  I met him at the old Red for a game.  I sat in the stands and listened to scout-speak for a while.  You hear things like "that kid couldn't hit a curve ball with an ironing board" or "that kid couldn't catch a bear in a telephone booth" and so on...scouts are pretty funny.  Then he says he has to go talk to a guy for a minute and asked if I wanted to go.  I was a pretty quiet guy so I am sure my dad did not expect me to do something stupid, but he goes on to talk to this player and asks him how much he needed to sign.  I just remember, as a college student, this guy being offered six figures, and it was escalating.  The kid was shrugging shoulders and saying he didn't know and the offer would go up another 25 or 50K, and it kept going up.  I was like "Dude, take the freakin' money!".   Finally, my dad said, "hey, we want to draft you, but not if you won't tell me your price".  They didn't want to waste the pick of course.  Finally, they agreed on a very large number.  But I stood there in awe about the simplicity (back then) of the negotiation.  I also later wondered how and why I chose the academic path with a dad that was a professional player, college coach and pro scout.  Boy did I take the wrong turn!  At least that's what I thought until I became a message board moderator.

I could tell you a handful of personal or close friend stories that sound a lot like that from playing days. But, that was when the draft was 50+ rounds. Guys would be taken all the time in the 30s and 40s or higher where the scout knew a number and either picked a guy they thought they could convince or took a flyer thinking he might not want to go to college and wanted to start making some money. I'm out the loop these days with only 20 rounds and not having played or been coaching HS ball for a long time.

Edited July 22, 2022 by JTrue

[JTrue]

2022 MLB Draft Tracker | Spotrac

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2022 MLB Draft Tracker - Round by round results with associated rookie contract and salaries for each player

If you're tracking which of our guys and recruits have signed and what those around them are getting.

[olafberserker]

So am I reading it correctly that the guy picked 21 spots after Showalter got almost 1.5 million signing bonus?

[olafberserker]

Apparently I am correct and the Angels did something similar last year.  Just weird how this all shakes out now.   Who knows?

[JTrue]

Carmine Lane signed for $75k.

Edited July 27, 2022 by JTrue

[Brad]

Doesn’t seem like a good move.  

[CousinRicky]

1 hour ago, JTrue said:

Carmine Lane signed for $75k.

 

1 hour ago, Brad said:

Doesn’t seem like a good move.  

Jonathon Kosco had been drafted and was doing really well in the minors.  According to his dad, the pressure was on minor league managers to play the top round draft picks whether or not they were performing better at the time. Not saying low round picks can't make it but the odds are stacked against you.

[Brad]

You are correct.  Happens at all levels. 
 

[JTrue]

Kerkering gone for $322k and below slot.