Braves sign 11 of first 12 Draft picks by using slot money wisely

ATLANTA -- AJ Gracia was the Braves’ top overall selection in this year’s MLB Draft. But now that signing bonuses have been revealed, it’s obvious that third-round selection Jensen Hirschkorn was Atlanta’s top target.

Gracia’s willingness to accept a signing bonus that was well under the assigned slot value for the ninth overall pick allowed the Braves to give Hirschkorn the largest signing bonus ever given to a player taken after the second round in MLB Draft history. His $3,997,500 bonus persuaded him to back out of his commitment to pitch for LSU.

“There's not a whole lot [Hirschkorn] can’t do,” Braves vice president of amateur scouting Ronit Shah said. “He's athletic. He’s a big-time basketball guy. We're really excited to see what he can do. He throws a ton of strikes. We saw him in the summer at a big-time event, the Area Code Games. He struck out nine guys in three innings. It’s hard to do better than that."

MLB.com’s Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis have learned the Braves have signed 11 of the first 12 players they selected this past weekend. The club’s only unsigned selection thus far is seventh-round pick Jack Brenner, a catcher from Fond du Lac High School in Wisconsin.

Gracia also agreed to a $3,997,500 signing bonus. The slot value of the No. 9 pick was $6,675,300. The Braves also went underslot with outfielder Carter Beck, the club’s other first-round selection from Indiana State University. Beck signed for $2,684,100, despite his slot value being $3,578,800.

The Braves went $2,677,800 underslot with Garcia and $894,700 underslot with Beck. The combined savings was $3,572,500, a figure that helped the Braves sign the high school pitchers they took with their next two picks.

Second-round selection Kaiden McCarthy, who comes from the Vermont Academy (Vt.) signed for $2,497,500, which was $415,600 above slot value. As for Hirschkorn, a 6-foot-7 pitcher from Kingsburg High School (Calif.), he signed for $3,023,800 over slot value.

So, the Braves went $3,572,500 underslot with their first two picks combined and $3,439,400 overslot with their third and fourth selections.

The Braves had a bonus pool of $15,870,800 to use this year. That is the number the club has to spend on each of the players taken in the first 10 rounds, and to any players given a signing bonus above $150,000 beyond the 10th round. Penalties are assigned to any club that exceeds its bonus pool by more than five percent.

Other Braves signings

4th round: RHP Cole Dennis (Bishop Snyder High School) -- $523,280 ($174,420 underslot)
5th round: LHP Wil Libbert (Ole Miss) -- $447,500 ($64,000 underslot)
6th round: RHP Tyson Grulkowski (Muskego High School) -- $597,500 ($207,600 overslot)
8th round: C Jacob Jarrell (Clemson) -- $500 ($244,000 underslot)
9th round: OF Parker Brosius (Georgia Tech) -- $500 ($211,500 underslot)
10th round: 1B Ben Zeigler-Namoa (University of Hawaii) -- $500 ($197,800 underslot)
11th round: 3B Ryne Barker (Casteel High School) -- $697,500 (no slot value)

Jarrell, Brosius and Zeigler-Namoa are seniors who have exhausted their collegiate eligibility. Because these players have no leverage, the Braves were able to give each of them a small bonus.

Even with Barker’s signing bonus counting toward the bonus pool, the Braves are a little more than $430,000 away from reaching their total. Some of this could be used to lure Brenner away from his commitment to play for Oklahoma, which recently won the College World Series.