Baseball America | Blog | Baseball America Draft Blog | Royals, Myers Agree On $2 Million

A day after agreeing to terms with Chris Dwyer on a fourth-round-record $1.45 million bonus, the Royals are aggressively spending again. They have agreed with Wil Myers on a $2 million bonus, by far the highest in the third round this year and more than five times MLB’s $380,700 recommendation for his slot (No. 91) in the draft. It’s also the fourth-largest in the entire 2009 draft so far, trailing only that of Tony Sanchez (Pirates), Matt Hobgood (Orioles) and Mike Minor (Braves)—all of whom were taken in the first seven picks.

Myers’ bonus is by far the highest in the third round this year, topping the $475,000 the Phillies gave Kyrell Hudson at No. 106. It’s also just short of the all-time record for third round: $2.29 million for the Mariners’ Matt Tuiasosopo in 2004.

A catcher/third baseman from Wesleyan Christian Academy in High Point, N.C., Myers was rated as a first-round talent by some clubs. He combines athleticism and offensive potential and drew comparisons to former National League MVP Dale Murphy, who began his pro career as a catcher. Myers had committed to South Carolina.

dodgers signed garrett gould

Posted by Matthew | August 14, 2009 at 2:55 pm | Shortcut

Re Gould: He still has to pass a physical. We’ll post his bonus as soon as he gets it.

Posted by Jim Callis | August 14, 2009 at 3:14 pm | Shortcut

Any chance the A’s sign Cape Cod MVP Kyle Roller or will he go back to school for his senior year?

Posted by Dan | August 14, 2009 at 3:30 pm | Shortcut

Jim,
Is all this money the Royals are spending on picks the right way to go with all the HS talent? Seems like it hasnt been paying off with Hosmer and Moustakas to this point.

Just wondering.

Posted by Tom | August 14, 2009 at 4:11 pm | Shortcut

Re Roller: From what I heard from Cape sources, doesn’t sound like the A’s are making a big run at Roller despite his huge summer.

Posted by Jim Callis | August 14, 2009 at 4:13 pm | Shortcut

Re the Royals: Kansas City needs a lot of talent. They may not hit on every guy they sign–I still do like Hosmer and Moustakas, though–but they need to be as aggressive as possible signing young talent. They can’t compete with the big boys for free agents. I like what they’ve done with Myers and Dwyer in this draft.

Posted by Jim Callis | August 14, 2009 at 4:15 pm | Shortcut

How does Myers signing for $2mill influence the demands of max stassi? He wanted $1.5 mill before, does the price go up now?

Posted by Derek | August 14, 2009 at 4:24 pm | Shortcut

Re Stassi: I don’t think that changes much. Myers was drafted ahead of him and Stassi’s price tag was around $1.5 million before the draft. I think the A’s will get that one done soon.

Posted by Jim Callis | August 14, 2009 at 4:33 pm | Shortcut

So Myers gets $2M, Stassi is in line for $1.5 and Tommy Joseph signs today with SF for $712. Three HS C’s ranked very closely pre-draft all with D1 commits. What gives? Is this solely related to the cash each team has to spend on its drafts?

Posted by Steve | August 14, 2009 at 5:07 pm | Shortcut

Not just the team’s cash, because the Royals aren’t that much wealthier than the A’s or Giants. It’s related to how much each team liked the player; the player’s asking price; and how much the team believed the player might go to school.

Posted by Jim Callis | August 14, 2009 at 5:11 pm | Shortcut

So I guess the strategy should be, buy all the gear you can for the D1 school you’re committed to, learn the fight song, date a cheerleader and you can extract more money from the team who selected you. The team pays someone $1M + premium because they are a good actor? Seems like an ineffective market to me for both sides – how long until someone blows it up with a lawsuit and which side will do it?

Posted by Steve | August 14, 2009 at 5:21 pm | Shortcut

Is it pretty much a guarantee that the A’s have given up on Sam Dyson signing, or is there still a chance there?

Posted by Nate | August 14, 2009 at 5:45 pm | Shortcut

Re Dyson: I was talking to BA’s college guru, Aaron Fitt, about this, because Aaron is president of the Sam Dyson Fan Club. He thinks he’ll wind up back at South Carolina and I haven’t heard anything to indicate otherwise.

Posted by Jim Callis | August 14, 2009 at 5:54 pm | Shortcut

It amazes me that the teams that do very little in the Majors try to spend so much on their drafts, Pirates and Royals. It seems like trying to make their major league teams more competitive would makes fans of these franchises much more happy. I’m all for spending on young talent, but you have to try to keep your major league team above water as well. How many Pirates fans would say that they commend their front office for this practice?

Posted by Joshua | August 14, 2009 at 6:54 pm | Shortcut

[...] It’s the second-highest bonus in the third round this year, trailing only the $2 million that Wil Myers agreed to with the Royals [...]

Posted by BaseballAmerica.com: Blog: Baseball America Draft Blog » Blog Archive » Red Sox, Renfroe Agree On $1.4 Million | August 14, 2009 at 7:12 pm | Shortcut

Is Max Stassi almost 100% going to sign?

Posted by Tyler | August 15, 2009 at 1:22 am | Shortcut

Re Stassi: Nothing is 100 percent but I’m confident a deal will get done there.

Posted by Jim Callis | August 15, 2009 at 10:59 am | Shortcut

will the a’s sign pat strover and how would you rank there draft

Posted by rick | August 15, 2009 at 1:16 pm | Shortcut

No word on Stover. If the A’s sign Grant Green and Max Stassi, as I expect, I’ll really like their draft. Both those guys were great talent values for where they got them.

Posted by Jim Callis | August 15, 2009 at 1:23 pm | Shortcut