DEAL COMPLETED: SF Giants just confirm a new huge deal
The 2024 MLB draft has concluded, and teams are now focusing on signing their draft picks. On Wednesday, the San Francisco Giants secured deals with three of their 2024 picks at underslot values: Greg Farone (seventh round), Zane Zielinski (ninth round), and Cade Vernon (10th round).
SF Giants sign a trio of 2024 draft picks to underslot deals
Rounds 6 – 10 often provide teams with opportunities to create spending flexibility by selecting players earlier than expected. The Giants may have employed this strategy with some of their picks in this range.
Greg Farone agreed to a $204,150 signing bonus, despite the slot value for his pick being $272,200. Zane Zielinski and Cade Vernon each agreed to a $17,500 bonus, while the slot values for their picks were $194,200 and $182,600, respectively. Carlos Collazo of Baseball America first reported all the amounts and signings.
Why would players agree to such deals? Teams often overdraft college seniors with the hope of securing underslot agreements, as they are not required to sign players to their assigned slot values.
For the Giants, these deals created $409,850 in slot savings, which they will likely reallocate to some of their top picks. They selected James Tibbs III with the 13th overall pick, which has a slot value of $5.2 million. If Tibbs III requires more money, the Giants now have additional flexibility from these earlier signings. Additionally, they may need the extra funds to sign outfielder Dakota Jordan, who fell to the Giants in the fourth round due to signability concerns and questions about his bat’s adjustment to pro pitching. Jordan’s pick has a slot value of $624,800, but the Giants will likely need to exceed that amount to secure the power-hitting prospect.
By signing Farone, Zielinski, and Vernon, the Giants created spending flexibility. They can exceed their total bonus pool of $7,566,200 by up to five percent without losing future draft picks. No team has exceeded this five-percent threshold, but the Giants have historically approached this limit. This means they have an additional $378,000 to spend on this year’s draft class.
The Giants may need all this money not only to sign their top 10 picks but also to secure some quality players selected in the later rounds. It is worth noting that the overwhelming majority of players drafted in the first 10 rounds end up signing with their teams, making it unusual and rare when they do not.