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First Pitch: A Quick Review of Where the Pirates Stand With Draft Signings

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The Pittsburgh Pirates have had a busy week signing draft picks. So far, they have agreed to deals with 21 players, officially announcing the signing of most of those players. The agreements include three of their first four picks, with all three prep players receiving seven figures. There are still players left to be signed, and still about a month to make that happen. At the rate the Pirates are currently signing players, they might only need another week. Here is a quick rundown of where they stand.

Top 10 Round Players Remaining Unsigned: Connor Joe (Comp A), Jordan Luplow (3), Nelson Jorge (7), Kevin Krause (9)

I’d expect all four to eventually sign. However, the Pirates will need to create some slot money, because…

Money Available For Over-Slot Deals: ($140,300)

The Pirates are currently over-slot. If all of the remaining players sign for slot, they will have exceeded their bonus pool. That’s not an issue, since it would only result in a $70,150 tax at the moment, and no loss of draft picks. They need to create at least $140,300 with their remaining signings, if not more. The biggest source of money would probably come from Connor Joe.

Why They Could Need More Bonus Pool Money: Gage Hinsz

The Pirates will need more than just the $140,300 listed above. It would be nice if they created enough slot room to sign 11th round right-handed pitcher Gage Hinsz. The projectable right-hander finished in our top 25 prospects, and was the fourth best player ranked from the 2014 draft. He falls behind Cole Tucker, Mitch Keller, and Trey Supak, who were the three guys receiving seven figures so far. Hinsz would be a great addition for the Pirates. If they don’t sign him, then someone like 24th round pick Denis Karas or 23rd rounder Zach Warren would be good investments.

Links and Notes

**SALEGet 24% Off the 2014 Prospect Guide and Other Pirates Prospects Gear

**2014 Pittsburgh Pirates Draft Pick Signing Tracker

**Prospect Watch: Kingham Shines in Triple-A Debut; First Homer For Gushue. Great start by Kingham in Triple-A, especially with the Pirates needing pitching in the short and long-term. He’s going to need several more starts before being considered for the majors, but more like this could have him up by the end of the year.

**Minor League Schedule: Doubleheader For West Virginia, Minarik Makes Pirates Debut

**Trey Supak Signs With Pirates For $1 M Bonus. This is a main reason why the Pirates are over-budget at the moment.

**Signing Bonus Information on Alex McRae and Michael Suchy. Two deals for slightly under-slot money. If the Pirates get similar savings on guys like Jorge and Krause, they could erase their overage. Then any savings from Joe or Luplow would be available to be applied to someone like Hinsz.

**2014 Jamestown Jammers Season Preview. The offense got off to a good start tonight, with great debuts from 2014 draft picks Taylor Gushue and Carl Anderson.

Tim Williams
Tim Williams
Tim is the owner, producer, editor, and lead writer of PiratesProspects.com. He has been running Pirates Prospects since 2009, becoming the first new media reporter and outlet covering the Pirates at the MLB level in 2011 and 2012. His work can also be found in Baseball America, where he has been a contributor since 2014 and the Pirates' correspondent since 2019.

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