A's agree to terms with 31 players from 2019 first-year player draft

June 10th, 2019

OAKLAND, Calif. -- The Oakland A’s have agreed to terms with 31 players from the 2019 First-Year Player Draft, the club announced today. The list includes each of the A’s picks from the third through 11th rounds and 18 of the top 24.

The players to agree to terms are:

3rd Round:
Marcus Smith, 18 (19 on Sept. 11), is the No. 3-ranked player in the state of Kansas by Baseball America. He is the Pembroke Hill High School record holder for career hits (112), runs (112), triples (12), stolen bases (76), home runs (13) and RBI (79). His .607 on-base percentage in 2019 was the sixth-best single-season OBP in program history, and his .534 career on-base mark is a school record. He was named a Perfect Game Pre-Season High Honorable Mention and was a member of the 18u Royals Scout Team in the summer prior to his senior season.

4th Round:
Kyle McCann, 21, hit .299 (66x-221) with 12 doubles, one triple, 23 home runs, 70 RBI and a .468 on-base percentage in 62 games, all starts, at catcher for the Yellow Jackets this season. The 6’2”, 217-pound junior led the Atlantic Coast Conference in home runs and ranked third in RBI, walks (62) and on-base percentage. A 2019 All-ACC first teamer, McCann entered the 2019 First-Year Player Draft ranked as the No. 135 prospect by Baseball America. Yesterday he was announced as a finalist for the Buster Posey Award, given annually to the nation’s best collegiate catcher. McCann’s father, Joe, was drafted by the New York Mets and played five seasons in the minor leagues (1989-1993).

5th Round:
Jalen Greer, 17 (18 on July 19), is the top-ranked shortstop in the state of Illinois by Baseball America. He batted .314 (16x51) with four doubles, two triples, two home runs and 15 RBI in 18 games in his senior season. He was named a Perfect Game Pre-Season High Honorable Mention for 2018-19.

6th Round:
Seth Shuman, 21, was 6-5 with a 3.83 ERA (39 ER in 91.2 IP) and 114 strikeouts in 16 starts for the Eagles as a junior this season. His 114 strikeouts led the Sun Belt Conference and were tied for 19th among all NCAA Division I pitchers. The 6-foot-1 right-hander was named Pre-Season All-Sun Belt Conference in 2018 and 2019. He threw three complete games as a sophomore in 2018, including in an elimination game of the Sun Belt Tournament. Shuman’s father played baseball at Valdosta State and his brother pitched at Auburn University.

7th Round:
Drew Millas, 21, batted .275 (56x204) with 11 doubles, two triples and five home runs and 25 RBI in 51 games, all starts, in his junior season with the Bears. As a sophomore, Millas batted .321 (68x212) with a .416 on-base percentage and a .500 slugging mark, earning second-team All-America honors. The switch-hitting catcher earned first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors in both 2018 and 2019. Prior to his junior season, he played for the Wareham Gatemen in the Cape Cod League, batting .274 (32x117) with five doubles, one triple, 11 RBI and nine walks in 34 total games.

8th Round:
Jose Dicochea, 18, is the No. 6-ranked player and the highest-ranked high schooler in the state of Arizona by Baseball America. He was 6-3 with a 1.30 ERA (10 ER in 54.0 IP) and 86 strikeouts in his senior season. The right-handed pitcher threw a no-hitter in the state championship semifinals and allowed two runs in 6.0 innings while striking out 10 batters in the state championship final game.

9th Round:
Colin Peluse, 20 (21 on June 11), was 3-8 with a 5.74 ERA (51 ER in 80.0 IP) with 71 strikeouts in his junior season with the Demon Deacons. In 2018, the right-hander recorded a team-leading 6-2 record and 3.87 ERA (36 ER in 83.2 IP) over 16 games (14 starts). He is the No. 12-ranked arm out of North Carolina and is ranked 236th overall by Baseball America. Prior to his junior season, Peluse allowed two runs over 7.0 innings in two appearances with the Chatham Anglers in the Cape Cod League.

10th Round:
Patrick McColl, 21 (22 on June 22), batted .387 (70x181) with 16 doubles, three triples, 12 home runs, 47 RBI and 17 walks in his senior season for the Crimson. He hit a walk-off grand slam in the ninth inning against Yale to complete a nine-run comeback for Harvard on April 6. The left-handed hitter led the team in hits, doubles, on-base percentage (.448) and slugging (.707), and he led the Ivy League in hits, home runs and slugging. He is the top-ranked position player out of Massachusetts by Baseball America.

11th Round:
Dustin Harris, 19 (20 on July 8), batted .373 (75x201) with 11 doubles, nine triples, 33 RBI and 18 walks with a .423 on-base percentage for St. Petersburg College this season. The Land O’Lakes, Florida, native was selected to First Team All-State for his high school senior season, in which he batted .473 (44x93) with a .515 on-base percentage and a.688 slugging mark.

13th Round:
Sahid Valenzuela, 21 (22 on Sept. 16), batted .288 (42x146) with seven doubles, one triple, one home run, 24 RBI and 23 walks in an injury-shortened junior season for the Titans. Despite the abbreviated season, Valenzuela was tied for second-most walks on the team. The switch-hitting shortstop started all 61 games as a sophomore, batting .272 with 14 doubles, four triples and 22 RBI. He played high school baseball at St. Francis Central Coast Catholic in Watsonville, CA and was named first-team All-League in all four of his high school seasons.

14th Round:
Peyton Miller, 20, was 3-2 with two saves, a 3.86 ERA (17 ER in 39.2 IP) with 54 in 14 games (six starts) for Tyler JC this season. He did not allow an earned run through his first 10 appearances this season (21.0 IP).

15th Round:
Josh Watson, 22 (23 on Sept. 10), batted .324 (81x250) with 21 doubles, 10 home runs, 42 RBI and 36 walks for the Horned Frogs this season. He holds the TCU record for most games played, starting in every game since his freshman season in 2016. The switch-hitting outfielder was named Honorable Mention All-Big 12 for 2019 and was selected Second-Team All-Big 12 for his junior effort. Watson ranked second on his team in average, on-base percentage (.424) and on-base-plus-slugging (.952) and led the team in total bases (132).

17th Round:
Vince Coletti, 22, was 4-2 with one save and a 4.21 ERA (27 ER in 57.2 IP) and 62 strikeouts in 35 relief appearances for Florida Atlantic this season. Made a team-leading 15 starts as a junior in 2018 and ranked second with 78.1 innings pitched. Prior to transferring to FAU in 2018, pitched at Palm Beach State College, going 5-0 with a 2.95 ERA as a sophomore.

19th Round:
Jared McDonald, 22, batted .362 (54x149) with six doubles, two triples, nine home runs, 39 RBI and 18 walks in 41 games, all starts, for Western Oregon this season. He was named First-Team D2CCCA All-West Region and First-Team All-GNAC for his senior year efforts. Ranks third all-time in program history with 18 home runs and sixth in career slugging percentage (.606).

21st Round:
Shane Selman, 22 (23 on Aug. 30), batted .264 (62x235) with 16 doubles, two triples, four home runs, 31 RBI and 25 walks in his senior campaign for McNeese State. He was named to the Nashville Regional All-Tournament Team after batting a team-leading .444 with three RBI in the regional. Selman finished his collegiate career ranked third in program history in games played (218), doubles (51) and home runs (38) while ranking fourth in hits (236) and RBI (150).

22nd Round:
Jack Cushing, 22, was 4-5 with a 3.06 ERA (27 ER in 79.1 IP) with 87 strikeouts in 15 games (12 starts) for the Hoyas this season. He pitched a complete game on April 13 at Villanova, allowing two runs on five hits and one walk while striking out six batters. Cushing struck out a program-record 16 batters in 7.0 innings vs. Mount St. Mary’s on March 5. The Texas native was named Second Team All-Big East as a senior, and his 236 career strikeouts set a program record. Overall, he ranks in the program’s top 10 in wins (15), strikeouts per nine innings (7.47), innings pitched (284.1) and games started (46).

23rd Round:
Austin Wahl, 24, was 1-2 with a 4.44 ERA (12 ER in 24.1 IP) and 21 strikeouts in 13 appearances (one start) for Cal State Monterey Bay this season. He previously earned his degree from Cornell University, where he walked onto the baseball team after playing two seasons of football. Wahl recorded 11 straight scoreless outings from March 31-May 12, 2018 and did not allow an extra-base hit in eight games of Ivy League play. In his senior season, the Hollister native posted a 2-0 record with a 2.61 ERA (6 ER in 20.2 IP) while holding opponents to a .197 average.

24th Round:
Trayson Kubo, 21 (22 on Sept. 26), was 3-4 with a 6.05 ERA (43 ER in 64.0 IP) with 64 strikeouts in 19 appearances (10 starts) last season. He was 3-2 with a 4.29 mark in conference play, and he pitched at least 6.0 innings in five of his last six starts. Kubo tallied a career-high 11 strikeouts over six innings against Army on March 13. His father played baseball at Hawaii Pacific University and his sister played softball for Weber State.

26th Round:
Elvis Peralta, 22, batted .357 (80x224) with 15 doubles, three triples, nine home runs, 42 RBI, 21 walks and 12 stolen bases in 56 games for Marshall University this season. Prior to Marshall, he attended Crowder College where he was named First-Team All American and earned the Most Outstanding Hitter Award at the Junior College World Series. Peralta recorded a .381 batting average with 11 home runs, 74 RBI and 30 stolen bases. Last week, the shortstop was named First-Team C-USA All-Tournament for his performance in the tournament, in which he slashed .429/.529/.571 and had an 11th-inning, game-saving diving stop up the middle to prevent a potentially game-winning run.

27th Round:
Gavin Jones, 20 (21 on July 19), batted .325 (54x166) with eight doubles, one triple, 12 home runs, 50 RBI and 31 walks in 52 games for the Roadrunners. He led the team with a .602 slugging percentage, home runs, hits and RBI while ranking second in average and third in on-base percentage (.439). Jones was named First-Team All-Region 16 as an infielder, was selected as a member of the Region 16 Baseball All-Defensive Team at shortstop and was named to the Missouri Community College Athletic Conference All-Conference Team.

29th Round:
Michael Woodworth, 21 (22 on Aug. 5), batted .325 (81x249) with 10 doubles, three triples, five home runs, 42 RBI and 29 walks in 63 games, all starts, for the Huskies this season. He earned Second-Team All-Conference honors. The Alameda native played two seasons at Sierra College in Rocklin, CA prior to transferring to UConn and earned First-Team All-Conference honors in his sophomore season. He spent the 2018 summer in the Futures Collegiate Baseball League and batted .287 with three doubles, two home runs, 13 RBI and 15 stolen bases in 26 games before his play was curtailed by injury. Woodworth was named First-Team All-League in his junior and senior seasons at Alameda High School.

30th Round:
Edward Baram, 22, was 7-2 with a 1.32 ERA (11 ER in 75.0 IP) and 79 strikeouts for the Panthers this season. He was named NCBWA First-Team All-American, D2CCA Second-Team All-American and ECAC Pitcher of the Year for his senior season. Over the course of his four-year collegiate career, Baram posted an 18-13 record with a 2.62 ERA and 226 strikeouts, fifth-most in program history.

31st Round:
Matthew Koehler, 23, batted .361 (74x205) with 10 doubles, five triples, 13 home runs, 45 RBI and 23 walks for Western Carolina this season. He led the team and the Southern Conference in average and slugging percentage (.649). The left-handed hitter was named First-Team All-Southern Conference in the outfield and was named Collegiate Baseball National Player of the Week for the week of April 8 after hitting a career-high three home runs for six RBI at Marshall. His father played baseball and his mother was a diver for North Carolina State.

32nd Round:
Marty Bechina, 22, batted .260 (51x196) with 17 doubles, five home runs, 35 RBI and 21 walks in 54 games (52 starts) for the Spartans this season. His 45 career doubles are tied for fifth-most and his 35 career stolen bases are ninth-most in program history. Bechina led the team with 25 runs scored and 13 stolen bases. His 124 assists ranked sixth in the Big 10 and 16th with 25 fielding double plays.

33rd Round:
Charles Hall, 24 (25 on Sept. 6), was 4-3 with a 4.42 ERA with 71 strikeouts and two saves in 17 outings (nine starts) for Tusculum this season, including a 3.83 ERA in conference play. He was named Second-Team All-SAC as well as First-Team D2CAA All-Southeast Region as a utility pitcher for his senior season. He played two seasons at Catawba Valley Community College prior to transferring to Tusculum, going 5-4 with a 5.37 ERA and 43 strikeouts in 2016.

34th Round:
Kumar Nambiar, 21, was 3-2 with a 3.90 ERA (26 ER in 60.0 IP) and 57 strikeouts for Yale this season. His last two starts of the season were both complete-game shutouts. He allowed just three hits and three walks while striking out five as he shut out Penn on April 21 and held Dartmouth hitless until the fifth inning on April 28. In that game, Nambiar allowed just three baserunners (two hits, one strikeout-wild pitch) while striking out nine batters. He earned Ivy League Pitcher of the Week honors for two straight weeks as a result. The southpaw was named First-Team All-Ivy for his senior season.

35th Round:
Zach Rafuse, 22, was 8-0 with a 4.07 ERA (36 ER in 79.2 IP) and 86 strikeouts in 16 appearances (15 starts) for the Pacers this season. He was named Second-Team All-Conference and struck out six or more batter in nine of his 16 outings. For his collegiate career, Rafuse was 13-3 with a 3.78 ERA (69 ER in 164.1 IP) with 171 strikeouts.

36th Round:
Jake Walkinshaw, 22 (23 on July 7), was 7-2 with a 2.01 ERA (22 ER in 98.2 IP) and 102 strikeouts for the Penmen this season. His performance earned him First-Team D2CCA East All-Region and First-Team Northeast-10 All-Conference honors. He led the league in innings pitched and strikeouts while ranking second in wins, seventh in ERA and 11th in strikeouts per game. Walkinshaw was 23-5 with 16 saves and 1.93 ERA over 76 career appearances, and his 234 career strikeouts rank fourth in program history.

37th Round:
Chase Wheatcroft, 22, was 5-2 with a 2.64 ERA (22 ER, 75.0- IP) and 53 strikeouts in 15 games (11 starts) for the Warriors this season. He threw a 99-pitch complete-game shutout vs. Cal State East Bay on March 1, allowing three hits and two walks while striking out eight batters. Wheatcroft was named First-Team All-CCAA and was a pre-season All-American selection. In 2018, the right-hander served as the closer, recording 11 saves in 16 outings with a 0.93 ERA (2 ER in 19.1 IP).

38th Round:
David Leal, 22, was 4-2 with a 3.42 ERA (21 ER in 55.1 IP) in 14 outings (eight starts) for Louisiana Tech this season. He pitched a 9.0-inning complete game on May 4 at Old Dominion, allowing two runs on eight hits while striking out seven batters. Additionally, he pitched 8.0- and 7.0-inning complete games in two of his final three games of the season. The lefty finished his collegiate career with a 7.10 strikeout-to-walk ratio (135 K, 19 BB). Among active NCAA Division I players, Leal’s 1.20 walks-per-9.0-innings ratio is second lowest. He earned Second-Team All-Louisiana and All-Conference USA honors in 2018.

40th Round:
Sam Romero, 22, was 3-2 with two saves, a 4.23 ERA (21 ER in 44.2 IP) with 39 strikeouts in 25 outings (eight starts) for the Sun Devils this season. He transferred to ASU after spending two seasons at Phoenix College where he posted a 5-5 record with a 4.73 ERA in 85.2 innings.