Players and teams agreeing to signing bonuses over the MLB slot recommendation is not something unusual for the first round, especially the top picks. As of yet unsigned, guys like Bryce Harper, Jameson Taillon and Manny Machado seem certain to sign for more than the MLB slot recommendations for the first through third overall picks.
The constant among the top picks, however, is that they are all likely to sign in some fashion. On the rare instances when they do not, teams are compensated for their failure to sign a first round pick with a similar first round pick the next year.
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Where above slot signings become more interesting is with later round picks. Often players with signability questions - particularly high school players who can go to college and re-enter the draft at a later date - slide in the draft because if teams select the players after the first round and do not sign them, they are left with nothing. On the flip side, if a team can sign a player with a later round pick, they have a draft steal, so to speak.
Over the past week, a number of later round picks have signed for well over their slot bonus. Jim Callis of Baseball America reported the signings with more information on each player in his posts.
- The Red Sox have signed high schooler (and Boston Celtic center) Kendrick Perkins to a $628K signing bonus. Perkins was a sixth-round selection.
