Baseball America notes on Royals draft

by Rhody Royals on Jul 2, 2008 9:06 AM EDT Comment 8 comments

From Baseball America regarding the Royals chances of signing Hosmer and/or Melville. Sounds upbeat to me but what does everyone else think of Jim Callis and his comments?

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/prospects/ask-ba/2008/266424.html

Teams knew that neither Hosmer, the best high school hitter in the draft and a Scott Boras Corporation advisee, nor Melville, arguably the best prep pitcher available, would be easy to sign. There's no concrete number on exactly what Hosmer is looking for, but clubs believed he wanted a major league contract worth upwards of $5 million. Melville's mother told scouts that he wanted a bonus commensurate with the first 10-15 picks, meaning a minimum of roughly $1.75 million.

There has been no public comment from either side on how negotiations are progressing, but I believe they'll try to get both deals done. The Royals wouldn't have chosen Hosmer third overall if they didn't think they could sign him, and they've paid top dollar for Boras clients in the first round of the previous two drafts (Luke Hochevar, Mike Moustakas). I don't think Melville is just an insurance policy in case the Hosmer negotiations go awry, and there's talk that the Missourian may be willing to give Kansas City a slight homestate discount.

Because both players will command more than slot money, it's unlikely that their deals would be finalized before the Aug. 15 deadline. I'll be shocked if the Royals don't sign Hosmer, and I think there's a good chance that they'll land Melville.

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Sounds promising.

by djk royal on Jul 2, 2008 9:44 AM EDT reply actions

I think they both sign

On August 15 at about 10 pm

Relive Royals History at royalsretro.blogspot.com

by RoyalsRetro on Jul 2, 2008 9:58 AM EDT reply actions

No reservations at all

I have no doubt we will sign both players, but like many have said from the beginning, they probably won’t be completed and/or announced until the deadline due to Selig’s iron fist and fear that somehow we will dramatically alter the decisions of other teams if we give overslot bonuses.

Founder of the Rowdy Hardy Fan Club

by eazyb81 on Jul 2, 2008 10:09 AM EDT reply actions

Agree...

I was curious to see the reaction from others and so far I agree. Both will sign, but not too long before the deadline. I think the positive reaction here helps to show that we seem to have some faith in the organization to take a step forward. We can use all of the prospects we can get and it sounds as if Hosmer and Melville will be two nice additions to minor league system.

by Rhody Royals on Jul 2, 2008 10:29 AM EDT reply actions

I'm not sure Callis is entirely in touch.

It’s pretty much been considered a given based on comments from both Melville and the org that they’ve already agreed in principle and are just awaiting “approval” from the MLB offices (i.e., waiting for people to sign so that Melville’s bonus doesn’t send the entire table into chaos). If that’s not something he’s aware of enough to at least allude to it, I’m not sure how seriously we should take his view on Hosmer.

Sarcasm™. It's the new gravy.

by jonfmorse on Jul 2, 2008 3:23 PM EDT reply actions

what does a major league contract

do versus a minor league contract when offered to draftees

by royalsfan03 on Jul 2, 2008 10:19 PM EDT reply actions

It puts them on the 40-man roster from the day he is signed.

This means that every year he spends in the minors is an option year. Basically, it makes it pretty certain that the player will have to be on the major league team in 3 years (which is a problem for high school players). It doesn’t affect the arbitration clock.

This is just my opinion. I could easily be wrong.

by NYRoyal on Jul 2, 2008 11:17 PM EDT up reply actions