Kyle Gibson
Rumors

Keith Law and Jason Churchill from espn.com were monitoring the signings going down on the deadline to sign 2009 draft picks. Let's recap of what happened.

For a full list of all of the 1st round signings, click here.

The deadline for players to sign is August 17, 2009

#1 Stephen Strasburg, Washington Nationals - After plenty of speculation that he would not sign, Strasburg inked a $15M signing bonus, the highest in MLB history.
#2 Dustin Ackley, Seattle Mariners - Signed for $7.5M. His deal was at first thought to be $9.5, but those early reports were erroneous.
#3 Donovan Tate, San Diego Padres - Instead of going back to UNC to play football, Tate signed with the Padres for $6.25M
#6 Zach Wheeler, San Francisco Giant - Signed for $3.3M.
#9 Jacob Turner, Detroit Tigers - Was looking for Rick Porcello-like money and got close to it - signed for $5.5M
#11 Tyler Matzek, Colorado Rockies - Allegedly needed to "break the bank" with his deal and signed for $3.9M
#12 Aaron Crow, Kansas City Royals - Still has not signed, but is not subject to the Aug 17th deadline.
#13 Grant Green, Oakland As - Received a $2.75M signing bonus.
#14 Matt Purke, Texas Rangers - Did not sign and will head to college.
#15 Alex White, Cleveland Indians - As expected, White signed for a bit less than Minor did: $2.25M.
#19 Shelby Miller, St. Louis Cardinals - Received a signing bonus of $2.875M
#22 Kyle Gibson, Minnesota Twins - Signed a $1.8M contract.
#29 Slade Heathcott, New York Yankees - Signed a $2.2M contract.
#30 LeVon Washington, Tampa Bay Rays - Ultimately did not sign with the Rays.

Keith Law and Jason Churchill of espn.com had a big day of draft pick signing updates.

The deadline to sign 2009 MLB draft picks is August 17th. For an update on the status of first round draft picks, click here.

• The Yankees and Slade Heathcott are closing in on a $2M deal.
• Mike Leake has reached an agreement with the Reds. The 8th overall pick signed for $2.2M.
• The Reds have also signed the 43rd overall pick, Brad Boxberger for $857K
• Kyle Gibson and the Twins are about $1M apart in their contract negotiations.
• Catcher Wil Myers agreed to a $2M signing bonus with the Royals. Myers was a third-round selection.
• The Rays are not encourage about their chances of landing their first round pick, LeVon Washington. The second baseman is represented by Scott Boras who is likely dealing with his other clients: top 3 picks Stephen Strasburg, Dustin Ackley and Donovan Tate.
• David Renfroe, the Red Sox third round pick, signed for $1.4M.
• The Rays reached an agreement with their second round draft pick, Todd Glaesmann, for $930K.
• Opinion is that the Rays will not be able to sign their second round pick, Kenny Diekroger.
• The Rays signed their fourth round pick, Luke Bailey, to a $750K signing bonus. Bailey was a big prospect until having Tommy John surgery in April. Fortunately, he projects as a catcher, professionally.
• Nick Franklin is expected to sign with the Mariners this weekend and was in Seattle taking a physical.
• Max Stassi, a fourth round pick, received an offer from the As that was "within the ballpark" according to his father.

Jason Churchill of espn.com has a TON of draft signing news to share

• While half of the 2008 first round signed before August 1st, only twelve have signed so far in 2009. For an update on the status of first round draft picks, click here.
• Major league baseball lowered their slot recommendations for 2009, but many players who are deemed "slot picks" (i.e., taken higher than they should have been simply so they'll sign for less) still are not signing because they're looking for 2008 money. Nick Franklin (#27 to Seattle) and LeVon Washington (#30 to Tampa Bay) are two candidates for this.
• Scott Boras, head of team-Stephen Strasburg, is still talking about a $50M contract for his client. That's still unlikely.
• Dustin Ackley, is looking for Mark Teixeira-money - a $9.5M signing bonus. The Mariners figure to offer him somewhere in between that and the industry standard of $6M.
• Donovan Tate has a slightly earlier deadline of August 15th, the day that UNC football players have to report to school. While everyone expects Tate to sign, he has expressed an interest in going back to UNC to play football.
• While most players have the leverage in negotiations, Aaron Crow does not because he's already held out once. He's currently asking for $3M, but the Royals are balking. Crow's only option is to hold out, go back to the Independent League and do the process all over again for another year. Seems unlikely, Crow went lower in the 2009 draft than 2008.
• The Yankees and Slade Heathcott are still not close.
• While he hasn't signed yet, Chad Jenkins figures to sign with Toronto eventually.
• The As and Max Stassi are "cautiously optimistic" about getting a deal done. Stassi was a 4th round draft pick.
• The Twins want to see Kyle Gibson throw before signing him to a contract. Gibson suffered a stress fracture in this throwing arm before the draft.
• While high schoolers Shelby Miller (#19 St. Louis) and Zach Wheeler (#6 San Francisco) are ultimately expected to sign, Jacob Turner (#9 Detroit), Tyler Matzek (#11 Colorado) and Matt Purke (#14 Texas) are far less certain. Matzek has been heavily rumored to be headed to Oregon for three years of college baseball.

The August 17th deadline to sign plays from the 2009 MLB Draft is fast approaching. We'll use this page to update the signing status of all the first round picks.

The deadline for players to sign is August 17, 2009

1. Stephen Strasburg, Washington Nationals - Despite speculation that he would not signed, agreed to a $15M contract. (updated 8/17/09)
2. Dustin Ackley, Seattle Mariners - Agreed to a $7.5M signing bonus. (updated 8/17/09)
3. Donovan Tate, San Diego Padres - Instead of going back to UNC to play football, signed a contract with a 6.25M signing bonus (updated 8/17/09)
4. Tony Sanchez, Pittsburgh Pirates - Signed a well-publicized contract before the draft
5. Matt Hobgood, Baltimore Orioles - Signed a contract
6. Zach Wheeler, San Francisco Giant - Signed for $3.3M (updated 8/17/09)
7. Mike Minor, Atlanta Braves - Signed a contract with a record $2.42M signing bonus (updated 8/8/09)
8. Mike Leake, Cincinnati Reds - Agreed to a $2.2M contract (updated 8/15/09)
9. Jacob Turner, Detroit Tigers - Received a Rick Porcello-like signing bonus of $5.5M (updated 8/17/09)
10. Drew Storen, Washington Nationals - Signed a contract
11. Tyler Matzek, Colorado Rockies - Rumors were that it would take a lot of money to keep Matzek away from Oregon: signed for $3.3M (updated 8/17/09)
12. Aaron Crow, Kansas City Royals - Agreed to a $3M contract with the Royals (updated 9/21/09)
13. Grant Green, Oakland As - Agreed to a $2.75M signing bonus (updated 8/15/09)
14. Matt Purke, Texas Rangers - Decided to go to college instead of signing with the Rangers (updated 8/17/09)
15. Alex White, Cleveland Indians - Got a bit less than Minor, $2.25M signing bonus (updated 8/17/09)
16. Bobby Borchering, Arizona Diamondbacks - Agreed to a contract with a $1.8M signing bonus (updated 8/15/09)
17. AJ Pollock, Arizona Diamondbacks - Signed a contract
18. Chad James, Florida Marlins - Agreed to a $1.7M contract (updated 8/15/09)
19. Shelby Miller, St. Louis Cardinals - Inked a $2.875M signing bonus (updated 8/17/09).
20. Chad Jenkins, Toronto Blue Jays - Signed for $1.359M (updated 8/15/09)
21. Jiovanni Mier, Houston Astros - Signed a contract
22. Kyle Gibson, Minnesota Twins - Signed a $1.8M contract (updated 8/17/09)
23. Jared Mitchell, Chicago White Sox -Signed a contract
24. Randal Grichuk, Los Angeles Angels -Signed a contract
25. Mike Trout, Los Angeles Angels - Signed a contract
26. Eric Arnett, Milwaukee Brewers - Signed a contract
27. Nick Franklin, Seattle Mariners - Signed for $1.28M (updated 8/15/09)
28. Reymond Fuentes, Boston Red Sox - Signed a contract
29. Slade Heathcott, New York Yankees - Agreed to a $2.2M signing bonus (updated 8/17/09)
30. LeVon Washington, Tampa Bay Rays - Ultimately did not sign with the Rays (updated 8/17/09)
31. Brett Jackson, Chicago Cubs - Signed a contract
32. Tim Wheeler, Colorado Rockies - Signed a contract

Keith Law of espn.com provided a reaction to the draft picks from Day 1 of the 2009 MLB Draft. For Day 2 analysis, click here.

Best picks of the first round

• Tyler Matzek, Colorado Rockies, #11 overall: He slid because of signability concerns and the Rockies benefited.
• Shelby Miller, St. Louis Cardinals, #19 overall: Like Matzek, he fell because of contract demands.
• Kyle Gibson, Minnesota Twins, #20 overall: The stress fracture in Gibson's throwing arm scared many teams off, but so long as it heals, the Twins got a steal.

Worst picks of the first round

• Tony Sanchez, Pittsburgh Pirates, #4 overall: It's not that Sanchez is not a first round player, but the Pirates reached too high at #4. The reason was a pre-draft deal that saved the Pirates some money, but they passed on too much talent.
• Randal Grichuk, Los Angeles Angles, #24 overall: Not even in Law's Top 100
• Nick Franklin, Seattle Mariners, #27 overall: Franklin does not have much upside along with below average power and mediocre defense at best.

More Thoughts

• Law liked the Diamondbacks draft of Bobby Borchering and AJ Pollock in the first round and Matt Davidson, Chris Owings and Mike Belifore in the second and third rounds.
• The Cubs took low stat, high upside athletic guys Brett Jackson and DJ LeMahieu.
• Rex Brothers was a steal for the Rockies at #34.

• Chuck Finder of The Pittsburgh Post Gazette says that the Pirates reached for Tony Sanchez.  I think everyone realizes that they did, but the pick was a financial one: he'll sign for less.
• The Diamondbacks had eight picks in the first three rounds - Bobby Borchering and AJ Pollock in the first round - and hope they will mine some impact players writes Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic.
• Jerry Brewer of The Seattle Times believes that Dustin Ackley was the right pick for Seattle.  I don't think anyone is going to argue with that.  Buster Olney of espn.com thinks that the top of the Mariners order could go 1. Ichiro Suzuki, 2. Ackley by 2011.
• The Padres aimed to draft ahtletic players with their early 2009 draft picks says Bill Center of The San Diego Union-Tribune.  Donovan Tate certainly fits that bill.
• By drafting Tyler Matzek the Rockies now have to make sure he doesn't go to Oregon for college.  It could cost them writes Irv Moss of The Denver Post.
• The Blue Jays are very impressed with their first round draft picks', Chad Jenkins, stuff, according to Richard Griffin of The Toronto Star.
• Minnesota took a gamble on Kyle Gibson who ended his season with a stress fracture in his forearm says La Velle Neal of The Minneapolis Star Tribune.
• Jared Mitchell has a high ceiling for the White Sox hopes Joe Cowley from The Chicago Sun-Times.
• The Red Sox hope that Reymond Fuentes has a similar career path to Jacoby Ellsbury writes Sean McAdam for the Boston Hearld.
• The Ranges have not been afraid to spend money on their draft picks recently and Kevin Sherrington of The Dallas Morning News notes that 2009 was no different.
• Marlins first round draft pick Chad James hopes he's on the major league roster in three years.
• LeVon Washington, the Rays first round draft picks, is ready to sign.
• The Orioles are not worried that Matt Hobgood was not rated as high as they had him in the 2009 draft.
• While Mike Trout (#24 to the Angels) was at the MLB studios at the draft, Stephen Strasburg watched the broadcast from his couch.

Here's a review of the first round of the 2009 MLB Draft.

1. Washington Nationals - Stephen Strasburg, RHP, San Diego State University
2. Seattle Mariners - Dustin Ackley, OF, UNC
3. San Diego Padres - Donovan Tate, OF, Cartersville HS, GA
4. Pittsburgh Pirates - Tony Sanchez, C, Boston College
5. Baltimore Orioles - Matt Hobgood, RHP, Norco HS, CA
6. San Francisco Giants - Zach Wheeler, RHP, East Paulding HS, GA
7. Atlanta Braves - Mike Minor, LHP, Vanderbilt
8. Cincinnati Reds - Mike Leake, RHP, Arizona State
9. Detroit Tigers - Jacob Turner, RHP, Westminster Christian Academy, MO
10. Washington Nationals - Drew Storen, RHP, Stanford
11. Colorado Rockies - Tyler Matzek, LHP, Capistrano Valley HS, CA
12. Kansas City Royals - Aaron Crow, LHP, Fort Worth Cats
13. Oakland As - Grant Green, SS, USC
14. Texas Rangers - Matt Purke, LHP, Klein HS, TX
15. Cleveland Indians - Alex White, RHP, UNC
16. Arizona Diamondbacks - Bobby Borchering, Bishop Verot HS, FL
17. Arizona Diamondbacks - AJ Pollock, OF, Notre Dame
18. Florida Marlins - Chad James, LHP, Yukon HS, OK
19. St. Louis Cardinals - Shelby Miller, RHP, Brownwood HS, TX
20. Toronto Blue Jays - Chad Jenkins, RHP, Kennesaw State
21. Houston Astros - Jiovanni Mier, SS, Bonita HS, CA
22. Minnestoa Twins - Kyle Gibson, RHP, Missouri
23. Chicago White Sox - Jared Mitchell, CF, LSU
24. Los Angeles Angels - Randal Grichuk, LF, Lamar Cons HS, TX
25. Los Angeles Angels - Mike Trout, CF, Millville Sr. HS, NJ
26. Milwaukee Brewers - Eric Arnett, RHP, Indiana
27. Seattle Mariners - Nick Franklin, SS, Lake Brantley HS, FL
28. Boston Red Sox - Reymond Fuentes, CF, Fernando Callejo HS, CA
29. New York Yankees - Slade Heathcott, OF, Texas HS, TX
30. Tampa Bay Rays - LeVon Washington, 2B, Buchholz HS, FL
31. Chicago Cubs - Brett Jackson, CF, University of California - Berkeley
32. Colorado Rockies - Tim Wheeler, OF, Cal State - Sacramento

For picks 1-5, 6-10, 11-15, 16-20 and 27-32 click on the links.

7:49pm With the 21st pick of the 2009 MLB Draft the Houston Astros select Jiovanni Mier.  The Twins are on the clock.

7:51pm Baseball Rumor Mill Best Available: Jared Mitchell, Tanner Scheppers, Kyle Gibson

7:53pm It's getting difficult to predict picks here because the draft has been a bit jumbled.  My guess is the Twins take Scheppers.  He's been playing in Minnesota for the last year anyway.

7:54pm With the 22nd pick of the 2009 MLB Draft the Minnesota Twins select Kyle Gibson.  The Chicago White Sox are on the clock.

7:55pm I love this pick.  Everyone knows about the stress fracture in his right arm which affected his end of season performance, but so long as the injury is not serious long term, they're getting a Top 10, maybe Top 5 pick at #21.

7:56pm What will be interesting going forward is seeing where Jared Mitchell goes.  He's been splitting time between baseball and football at LSU and I love the athleticism which is why I have him as my best available player.  However, it's obviously a pure upside pick.

7:57pm The White Sox have been rumored to be interested in position players, I wonder if they'd be excited by Mitchell's upside.  He seems like general manager Kenny Williams and manager Ozzie Guillen's type of player.

7:58pm With the 23rd pick of the 2009 MLB Draft the Chicago White Sox select Jared Mitchell.  The Angels are now on the clock for two picks.

7:59pm It's no surprise that I like this pick.  Harold Reynolds informs us that Kenny Williams played two sports in college as well.  The pick makes even more sense.

8:01pm Baseball Rumor Mill Best Available: Tanner Scheppers, Rex Brothers, Wil Myers.

8:03pm With the 24th pick of the 2009 MLB Draft the Los Angeles Angels select Randal Grichuk.  The Angels remain on the clock.

8:04pm Everyone knows that the Angels love high school players so where the player came from is not much of a surprise.  What is a surprise is that they passed up guys like Everett Williams, Mike Trout and Reymond Fuentes.

8:05pm I like Tyler Skaggs or Garrett Gould with this next pick for the Angels.

8:08pm With the 25th pick of the 2009 MLB Draft, the Los Angeles Angels select Mike Trout.  The Milwaukee Brewers are now on the clock.

8:09pm Fun scene at the draft with Trout in attendance.  I think this is going to be the future of the draft in years to come as it gains steam.  Harold Reyonlds tells us that they asked every player in the country to come to the draft and Trout was the only one who said yes.  I have a feeling that's going to change with the face time Trout just got.

8:13pm With the 26th pick of the 2009 MLB Draft, the Milwaukee Brewers select Eric Arnett.  The Mariners are on the clock.

Still more rumors and news floating in about what players teams are zeroing in on for tonight's draft.  Let's take a look.

• Jen Langosch of mlb.com is beginning to accept the possibility that the Pirates will take Tony Sanchez with their first pick, #4 overall.  Keith Law of espn.com believes that, beyond Sanchez, Zach Wheeler, Matt Hobgood, Grant Green and Aaron Crow all are in the mix.  Chuck Finder of The Pittsburgh Post Gazette agrees about Wheeler, Crow and Sanchez and also suggests Kyle Gibson.  There is also some great stuff about how Sanchez is ready to sign in Finder's piece.  
• Tracy Ringolsby of Inside the Rockies indicates that the Rockies are high on Matt Hobgood.
• Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic found out that the Diamondbacks really like Bobby Borchering and will take him if he's available with their picks (#16 and #17).  Mike Leake also falls into that category.  Some options for the Diamondbacks next picks (#35 and #41) include Tyler Skaggs, Jiovanni Mier, Brett Jackson and Tommy Mendonca.  
• Rangers president Nolan Ryan believes they will take a pitcher with their pick, #14.  Names under consideration are Shelby Miller and Matt Purke.

Jonathan Mayo of mlb.com has given us a number of mock drafts over the past month which can all be viewed here.  For his mock draft prior to this one, click here.

But, those are all in the past.  Let's get to his most recent mock draft published this morning.

1. Stephen Strasburg, Nationals
2. Dustin Ackley, Mariners
3. Donovan Tate, Padres (last week, Mike Minor)
4. Aaron Crow, Pirates
5. Zach Wheeler, Orioles
6. Tyler Matzerk, Giants
7. Alex White, Braves (last week, Shelby Miller)
8. Mike Minor, Reds (last week, Mike Leake)
9. Matt Purke, Tigers (last week, Jacob Turner)
10. Drew Storen, Nationals
11. Mike Leake, Rockies (last week, Rex Brothers)
12. Wil Myers, Royals (last week, Kyle Gibson)
13. Grant Green (last week, Tanner Scheppers)
14. Shelby Miller, Rangers
15. Eric Arnett, Indians
16. Rex Brothers, Diamondbacks (last week, AJ Pollock)
17. Bobby Borchering, Diamondbacks
18. Chad James, Marlins (last week, Chad Jenkins)
19. Chad Jenkins, Cardinals (last week, Grant Green)
20. Tim Wheeler, Blue Jays (last week, Everett Williams)
21. Jared Mitchell, Astros
22. Matt Hobgood, Twins
23. Everett Williams, White Sox (last week, Mike Trout)
24. Mike Trout, Angels (last week, Garret Gould)
25. Jiovanni Mier, Angels (last week, Matt Purke)
26. Garret Gould, Brewers (last week, Matt Davidson)
27. Tanner Scheppers, Mariners (last week Tony Sanchez)
28. Jacob Turner, Red Sox (last week, Max Stassi)
29. Brett Jackson, Yankees
30. Tommy Joseph, Rays (last week, Jiovanni Mier)
31. AJ Pollock, Cubs (last week, Tim Wheeler)
32. Kyle Gibson, Rockies (last week, Slade Heathcott)