The Yankees have come to terms with sandwich pick Jeremy Bleich, LHP from Stanford, last night 2 hours before the signing deadline. Bleich's deal was a signing bonus of $700,000, well under the $863,000 slot. It was believed since the deal was taking so long that it would be above slot, that proved to be false. Bleich, however, made a huge mistake by not signing earler. It is widely believed that he is now the top LHP prospect in the Yankees's system. If he had signed earlier, he could be in Charleston or Tampa right now. With Andy Pettite close to retirement and the Yankees with only unproven Chase Wright, Bleich could have flown to the minors on Joba pace and taken Pettite's spot in 2 years. Now the lefty will most likely head to Staten Island and hope to begin next year in Tampa rather than Charleston.
Gerrit Cole, 17 year old RHP, the Yankees 1st Round Pick chose to attend UCLA over signing with the Yankees. Cole had made it clear before the draft that he wanted to play pro, but on draft day got cold feet and had a change of heart. The Yankees will receive a 1st Round Compensation Pick in 2009.
Right handed Closer Scott Bittle, the Yankees' 2nd Round Pick also went unsigned. A physical showed wear and tear on his throwing shoulder and the Yankees wanted him to take less money because of that. Bittle countered with multiple doctor reports, including 1 by Dr. Andrews, showing that he was indeed fine. Bittle desperately wanted to sign with the Yankees, but they were convinced by the initial report and gave a reported much lower than slot offer. The Yankees will receive a Compensation Pick in the 2nd Round of the 2009 draft.
I wish Bleich would have signed a month ago, first so we could see how his heeled injury was and so he could move through the system quicker. He played in the Power House PAC-10 for 3 years and is no doubt a guy that won't have to stay in the farm for a long period of time, but he may have given Chase Wright a slight edge, as he is already in Scranton.
As far as Cole, I was never big on that pick. He is often characterizerized as immature, selfish and a horrible teammate. I also have a real problem with his "sudden" change of heart that occured just after it was released that he was seeking $7 million. My take is, he got rejected on the $7 million and the Yankees are clearly not going to give a 17 year old a Major League Contract, so like the big baby he is, he refused to hear any other offer. Jokes on you Cole. It is believed by most, including me, that Cole had the most to lose by going to college. He is headed to UCLA, a school with a lackluster team, which about guarentees he will not even come close to the first round when he is eligable again. Also, the fuss about Cole was he had the strongest high school arm, after college 90% of the competition will have caught up to him. My guess is the highest he goes is 3rd Round, but I doubt it.
I really feel for Bittle. I love this kid and his incredible arm. Looking at his workload this past season, I don't see where they are getting this injury stuff. Plus, even Dr. Andrews, the guru of MLB injuries, gave Bittle a clean bill of health. Bittle is said to have been willing to take the slot offer and he would have been an incredible addition to our pen. Best of luck to Bittle at Ole Miss and I hope to see him in pinstripes someday.
Pinstriped As Always,
Laura
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