OPINION —
OUT OF 31 first-round picks in baseball’s amateur draft, only one did not sign by the deadline last Friday the 13th. And yet it was Stanford right-hander Mark Appel who was unlucky, not the Pittsburgh Pirates, who had drafted him.
Their failure had nothing to do with being cheap. After all, the Bucs expended $17 million in signing bonuses last year, including $8 million to top pick Gerrit Cole. In fact, from 2007 to 2011, according to Baseball America, the $52 million Pittsburgh spent on the draft eclipsed the money spent by any other team.
But the Bucs were hindered from following that practice this year under baseball’s new labor agreement, which awards teams drafting bonus pools and imposes penalties ranging from fines to loss of one or more future first-round picks for teams going above the total for the sum of their picks in the first 10 rounds. This year’s first-round pick was slotted for $7.2 million and many experts believed Houston would use that first pick on Appel.
Before the draft, Appel had told the San Francisco Chronicle that he would love to be picked by the Astros, his favorite team when growing up. “[Being Houston’s top pick] would be like a cherry on top,” he said last month. “I’d get to go home and see my family and friends. [If not], just having the opportunity to play baseball is a blessing in itself. I don’t know how I could be disappointed, no matter where I end up.”
But Appel reportedly turned down $6.1 million from Houston before the draft. Instead of upping their offer, Houston turned elsewhere, as did those teams who drafted second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh.
Drafting eighth, the surprised Pirates chose Appel, even though the assigned eighth-round bonus was $2.9 million. The Bucs offered the most they could without losing a future draft pick: a $3.8 million bonus.
But the player who felt he was worth more than $6.1 million said no.
Not many Pittsburgh fans were upset; from the outset, Appel had turned off Bucco backers. Refusing to participate in a traditional phone interview with local writers after the draft, Appel, playing with Stanford in the NCAA baseball playoffs, instead issued a statement which smacked of perceived entitlement:
“I’m currently concentrating on winning a national championship and finishing my academic endeavors at Stanford. I will address the possibility of a professional career in due time.”
So, rocked in the NCAA baseball playoffs during a 17-1 loss, Appel returns to Stanford for his senior year, betting that he won’t get hurt, fail to match his 10-1 record this year, or be selected even lower in what most baseball experts feel will be a much stronger 2013 draft.
Because Appel didn't sign, the Pirates will receive an extra first-round pick in next June's draft, the ninth selection overall. The Pirates also could gain an extra selection from baseball's first competitive balance draft, conducted today in Secaucus, NY.
"We may be looking at [getting] three of the top 45 picks in the country," Pirates GM Neal Huntington said.
While they could have allocated most or all of their $6.56 pool to sign Appel, that would have required them to sign their remaining top 10 picks based on sign-ability alone, a practice whose disastrous results Pirates fans have seen for far too long.
Obviously the seven teams who drafted before Pittsburgh could have done the same thing, had they thought Appel was worth it.
Instead the Bucs signed higher-rated players and still have money allocated to the draft to use on added salary at the trade deadline.
And to those who want to paint Appel as just another pawn being manipulated by “advisor” Scott Boras (using an “agent” would remove amateur status for a player, thereby banning him from playing collegiate ball), remember that this 21-year-old got into academically-unparalleled Stanford; he know exactly what he was getting with Boras, the tree from whom this Appel fell.
He delays by a year beginning his major-league career and reaching any financial jackpot quicker.
So who’s the loser here?
Jim Sankey is baseball columnist for Allied News.
Sports
EXTRA INNINGS: Appel doesn't fall far from the Boros tree
- Sports
-
-
HIGH SCHOOL SPRING SPORTS ROUNDUP: County track set today at Hickory
The annual Mercer County Track & Field Invitational will be held at Hickory High’s Hornet Stadium today, beginning at 9 a.m.
Competing are all Mercer County teams, Class AAA and AA, as well as Slippery Rock. The meet serves as a warm-up to the District 10 championships set next week at Harbor Creek High. -
RANDOM THOUGHTS: Competitive cheerleading tough for even manly men
WHEN I THINK OF MYSELF, I think I’m one of the more manly men you’ll find.
I definitely don’t mind eating all kinds of meat and potatoes. I love watching sports — and participating in them when I can.
I do many other things that ‘real’ men do that aren’t fit for print and proper readers.
What I don’t do is wear skinny jeans or other tight-fitting clothes. I don’t wear jewelry nor do I wear colors that lean more to the femine side than the masculine side. -
HIGH SCHOOL SPRING SPORTS ROUNDUP: Mercer 9 drops thriller to KC
It was a game both teams were trying to win — it just seemed as though neither wanted to — as Kennedy Catholic High baseball team met Mercer Friday afternoon in an inter-region District 10 affair.
The teams traded late leads before, ultimately, Scott Moore’s fielder’s choice RBI-grounder scored pinch-runner Ethan Feldmiller with the game-winner, as KC captured an 11-10 conquest. -
NCAA Football: Rock 6-1 after 17-3 win over Cal U
Slippery Rock University rode a length-of-the-field scoring drive by its offense and a goal-line stand by its No. 1-ranked defense late in the first half of action Saturday to a 17-3 win over 14th-ranked visiting California (Pa.).
-
NFL: Steelers top Jags as Mendenhall makes return
Mike Tomlin isn’t ready to say the Pittsburgh Steelers are back. Not after watching his team sleepwalk through the second half against Jacksonville on Sunday.
-
IndyCar Racing: Crash takes Wheldon’s life
Every race car driver heads onto the track understanding this race could be the last and hoping it won’t be. On Sunday, IndyCar drivers got a harsh reminder when the worst happened to one of their own.
-
NHL: Sabres beat Penguins 3-2
The Buffalo Sabres have had trouble with the Pittsburgh Penguins whether Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin play or not.
-
NHL Quick glance: Montreal at Pittsburgh
A breakdown of the National Hockey League game Thursday night between the Pittsburgh Penguins and visiting Montreal Canadiens.
-
High School Highlights: Oct. 19, 2011
A look at the last few days in local high school fall sports action.
-
Leading Off: Oct. 19, 2011
News and notes from the local, regional and national sports scene.
- More Sports Headlines
-
Tim Cook Defends Apple's Tax Accounting
AP Photograher: 'It Was a Miracle' They Got Out
Raw: Crews Search for Survivors of Okla. Tornado
Raw: Tearful Reunion After Okla. Tornado
OKC Hospital Describes Treating Tornado Wounded
Obama Pledges Urgent Aid for Tornado Victims
Raw: Massive Funnel Clouds in Oklahoma
