Blue Jays sign highly-touted Canadian high school draft pick Sam Shaw to over-slot bonus
1 year ago
The Blue Jays have finally signed a 2023 draftee.
It was announced on Sunday afternoon that the Blue Jays signed ninth-rounder Sam Shaw to a $285,000 signing bonus, with the slot value of this pick at $175,900. If you’re awful at math like me, that is $109,100 over-slot.
Shaw was one of the first prospects I ever wrote about, as I was able to see him at the Canadian Futures Showcase last September. This was my scouting report on the 18-year-old after the event wrapped up
“Shaw has a compact build with some remaining projectability. He has quick bat speed and the ability to hit the ball in all parts of the zone. Shaw is a plus runner with good instincts on the bases. Defensively, he has soft hands and good range.”
MLB Pipeline’s Jim Callis notes that Shaw has solid bat-to-ball skills, while ESPN’s Kiley McDaniels notes that he’s a “Canadian-born masher”, which I interpret as him having some pop in his bat, even if he didn’t show it at the showcase I went to.
Shaw is the Blue Jays first signee. Toronto has a bonus pool of $6,529,700, but they’re allowed to go 4.99% over the limit, giving them $6.855,532.02 to spend on the signees without losing a first and second round pick.
Only the first ten rounds have an assigned slot value, with all picks from the 11th round onward having a set slot value of $150,000. The only pick after the 10th round that may have an over-slot deal is Sam Kulasingam, who had a .427 batting average in 2023, tied with Dylan Crews for the third highest in all of NCAA baseball.
Furthermore, the Jays will likely have to over-slot two other draftees, first rounder Arjun Nimmala and fourth rounder Landen Maroudis. Both these Florida-based players are high schoolers that were drafted lower than where they were anticipated to go, meaning that the Jays will more than likely give them an over-slot deal.
To save money, both Braden Barry (eighth-round pick) and Josh Mollerus (10th-round pick), may be given under-slot deals to go towards Nimmala and Maroudis.
As more signings are announced, Blue Jays Nation will keep you updated!
As always, you can follow me on Twitter, Instagram, and Threads @Brennan_L_D.
ARTICLE PRESENTED BY BETANO
Recent articles from Ryley Delaney
