Every pick through the end of round 10 of the MLB draft has a slot value. This is sort of a recommended signing bonus for each of those picks. The number one overall pick has a slot value of $8.42 million this year, all the way down to the final few picks of the 10th round, which have a slot value of $142,200. Teams can still sign their draft picks for however much they want, but if their total expenditures on players in the first 10 rounds exceeds the combined slot value of those picks, they are fined. If they exceed their budget by more than 5 percent, they forfeit a pick in next year’s draft.
It is important that teams draft some players they expect to sign for “below slot.” College seniors are the most likely players to do that, as they don’t have the option of staying in school and waiting to be drafted again. Drafting (and signing) such players frees up room to go “over slot” for players who aren’t going to sign unless there’s enough money on the table. This mostly applies to top high school players, all of whom have scholarship offers they can take instead of signing.
The Indians had 10 draft picks before the end of round 10 this year. They drafted six high school players with those picks, and four college players. Only one of those college players in the first 10 rounds was a senior. For 2018, the Indians’ total draft pool amount was $6,155,900. If they choose to use their 5 percent allowance (something they did last year), their draft pool amount is $6,463,695.
Here are those players, along with other pertinent information, the most important item being whether or not they’ve agreed to a deal yet, and if so, whether it’s above or below their slot value:
Top 10 Rounds Bonus Tracker
Round | Pick | Player | Position | School | Slot Value | Actual Bonus | Difference |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Round | Pick | Player | Position | School | Slot Value | Actual Bonus | Difference |
1 | 24 | Daniel Espino | RHP | Georgia Premier Academy | $2,830,000 | $2,500,000 | $330,000 |
2 | 63 | Yordys Valdes | SS | McArthur HS | $1,080,000 | $1,001,000 | $79,000 |
3 | 101 | Joseph Naranjo | 1B | Rueben S. Ayala HS | $577,000 | $770,000 | -$193,000 |
4 | 130 | Christian Cairo | SS | Calvary Christian HS | $434,300 | $955,000 | -$520,700 |
5 | 160 | Hunter Gaddis | RHP | Georgia State | $324,100 | $415,000 | -$90,900 |
6 | 190 | Jordan Brown | SS | Junipero Serra HS | $251,100 | $230,000 | $21,100 |
7 | 220 | Xzavion Curry | RHP | Georgia Tech | $197,300 | $125,000 | $72,300 |
8 | 250 | Will Brennan | CF | Kansas State | $169,300 | $169,300 | $0 |
9 | 280 | Will Bartlett | C | IMG Academy | $150,300 | ||
10 | 310 | Zach Hart | RHP | Franklin Pierce University ( | $142,500 | $5,000 | $137,500 |
11-40 | $0 | ||||||
Total | Spent | Remaining | |||||
$6,155,900 | $6,170,300 | -$14,400 |
The first 10 rounds of the MLB draft aren’t the only ones that matter, of course. The Tribe have hit some home runs in previous years on day three, which is composed of rounds 11-40. Since 2017, any player drafted in rounds 11-40 can be offered up to $125,000 to sign. They’re allowed to offer more than $125,000, of course, but the extra money will be deducted from the team’s total draft pool for rounds 1-10. In rounds 11-40, the Indians drafted 7 high school players, 22 college players and one community college player.
Here are how rounds 11-40 have panned out thus far and who has signed:
Rounds 11-40 Draft Tracker
Round | Pick | Player | Position | School | Signed? | Bonus |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Round | Pick | Player | Position | School | Signed? | Bonus |
11 | 340 | Nick Mikolajchak | RHP | Sam Houston State | Yes | |
12 | 370 | Allan Hernandez | RHP | Miami Christian Schoo | Yes | |
13 | 400 | Micah Pries | CF | Point Loma Nazarene University | Yes | |
14 | 430 | Ike Freeman | SS | North Carolina | ||
15 | 460 | Trey Benton | RHP | East Carolina | Yes | |
16 | 490 | Jordan Jones | RHP | Washington | Yes | |
17 | 520 | Julian Escobedo | CF | San Diego State | Yes | |
18 | 550 | Matt Waldron | RHP | Nebraska | Yes | |
19 | 580 | Kevin Kelly | RHP | James Madison University | Yes | |
20 | 610 | Nic Enright | RHP | Virginia Tech | Yes | |
21 | 640 | Michael Amditis | C | Miami | Yes | |
22 | 670 | Austin Pinorini | C | Gonzaga | Yes | |
23 | 700 | Chandler Fidel | LHP | University of Arkansas - Little Rock | Yes | |
24 | 730 | Joab Gonzalez | SS | New Mexico JC | Yes | |
25 | 760 | Eric Mock | RHP | Penn State | Yes | |
26 | 790 | Armani Sanchez | SS | Ronald Reagan HS | ||
27 | 820 | Landy Pena | SS | Leadership Christian Academy | ||
28 | 850 | Serafino Brito | RHP | Rutgers | Yes | |
29 | 880 | Nate Ocker | RHP | College of Charleston | Yes | |
30 | 910 | Jonathan French | C | Parkview H | ||
31 | 940 | Jared Janczak | RHP | TCU | Yes | |
32 | 970 | Andrew Misiaszek | RHP | Northeastern | Yes | |
33 | 1000 | Kevin Coulter | RHP | Mercer | Yes | |
34 | 1030 | Alec Wisely | RHP | South Florida | Yes | |
35 | 1060 | Randy Labaut | LHP | Arizona | Yes | |
36 | 1090 | Ryan Ramsey | LHP | Pascack Hills HS | ||
37 | 1120 | Jacob Forrester | RHP | Central Washington | Yes | |
38 | 1150 | Jake Eissler | RHP | TCU | ||
39 | 1180 | Jake Harrell | LHP | Sanger HS | ||
40 | 1210 | Cy Nielson | LHP | Spanish Fork HS |