BOSTON -- Less than a week after the Red Sox selected Jake Schaffner with a first-round Draft pick they knew would be viewed as “very off the wall,” the club officially signed the UNC shortstop on Friday.
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It was all part of a strategy by amateur scouting director Jake Bruml to go over-slot for players they liked later in the Draft, including third-rounder Jace Mataczynski (shortstop), ninth-round selection Martin Shelar (outfielder) and 10th-rounder Kaleb LaFavor (right-hander).
Those three players were also among the signings the Sox announced on Friday.
A high schooler from Wisconsin known for being an outstanding defender, Mataczynski signed for $2 million as the 96th overall pick, which had a slot value of $815,700.
The Sox pounced on Shelar, a vaunted slugger from a powerhouse high school (Marist) in Georgia, when he was still on the board and wound up signing him for $1.5 million, a new Draft record for a ninth-round pick. That compelled Shelar to decline his scholarship from Mississippi State. The slot value of the 274th pick in the Draft was $250,400.
LaFavor, who Bruml compared with Jacob Misiorowski projection-wise, is a 6-foot-7 high school righty from Iowa with a low arm slot and big extension. LaFavor signed for $847,500, well above his slot value of $194,000.
WIthout question, this was an interesting Draft for the Red Sox in Bruml’s first year running the board, starting with the stunning selection of Schaffner.
“We prepared for 20 scenarios,” said Bruml. “I won't say where this scenario was on that list. We knew what we were getting into. We were very comfortable with it, and for the record, I told the smaller room of senior leadership, ‘Hey, we are going this route. This is going to be viewed as very off the wall.’”
But his strategy started to come into focus, particularly on Day 2.
“It was a roller coaster with how the first pick went down and trying to navigate what to do with those savings, and obviously the next day, having a sense of what we wanted to do with all those savings,” said Bruml. “We were hoping that those guys got to the ninth and 10th round, but I think we were well prepared to handle it, and it was a ton of fun.”
All signees will report to Fort Myers, Fla.