The Minnesota Twins have been moving very methodically when it comes to getting their 2013 draft class under contract and compared to the other AL Central teams it would not be an exaggeration to call it a glacial pace.
Note: All signings information and counts are pulled from Baseball America’s 2013 MLB Draft Database.
Chicago (9/40): After the 10th round they’ve only signed 36th round selection Nick Parent, but they have eight of their first ten selections under contract including first round selection Tim Anderson (17th overall).
Cleveland (10/39): The Indians have four of their top ten under contract including Clint Frazier (4th overall) and another four from rounds 11-20 have signed.
Detroit (19/41): First round pick, Jonathan Crawford (20th overall) signed for a shade over $2 million but the Tigers have been very active outside of their top pick. Ten players selected between the 5th and 20th are now under contract.
Kansas City (22/41): The Royals have over half their draft class signed already and are currently $1.7 million under budget. Much of that “surplus” figures to go in the direction of Sean Manaea (34th overall) but they are in good shape to pull off a couple surprise signings as well. Regardless, Hunter Dozier (8th overall) and Cody Reed (46rd overall) are in the fold. Just four of the 21 players KC selected in rounds 1-20 are unsigned and there are reports that Carter Hope (3rd round) also has a contract but the bonus amount is unknown. According Kings of Kauffman, the Royals have actually signed 26/41 picks so far.
The Royals and Tigers have clearly been aggressive in getting their players under contract and some of that is naturally the nature of their draft classes. The White Sox and Indians have to combine their signings to get to the level of KC and Detroit but both have their top picks in the fold and Chicago especially has to be thrilled to have secured nearly all of their top ten within a week of the draft.
Which brings us to the Twins …
On Friday, Jim Callis tweeted that the Twins had signed 3rd round pick Stuart Turner for a below slot bonus of $550,000. Turner agreed to a deal on Thursday but the dollar amount attached to it was unknown until the 14th. His signing along with those of Brian Navarreto (6th round) and Mitchell Garver (9th) means that all three catchers the team took in their top-10 are now a part of the organization. Unfortunately RHP Ethan Mildren (12th round) is the only other selection that the team has signed giving them a whopping 4 out of 40.
Obviously much of the team’s efforts have been focused – and rightly so – on 4th overall pick Kohl Stewart. Negotiations are reportedly in progress on that front which is good news. Once his bonus is finalized the action should pick up but discussions with 4th rounder Stephen Gonsalves could also hold up progress.
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Both University of Minnesota lefties have signed deals with their respective organizations. Tom Windle (Dodgers, 2nd round) received a $986,500 bonus while D.J. Snelten (Giants, 9th round) agreed to a bonus of $140,900. Fellow Gopher Drew Ghelfi (Brewers, 25th) remains unsigned as are the state’s four high school sections and Minnesota State-Mankato RHP Josh Matheson (Brewers, 19th).