Latos, Walden Highlight Final DFE Signings

Rule changes make this the last time teams can draft, follow and evaluate players

By John Manuel and Jim Callis
June 1, 2007

Although hard-throwing righthanders Jordan Walden and Matt Latos took negotiations into the 11th hour, both of the highest-profile draft-and-follow prospects from the 2006 draft eventually signed with the teams that drafted them.

Jordan Walden entered 2006 with the tag as the best high school prospect in the draft, not to mention seven-figure bonus aspirations. He had to wait a year, but Walden got his money, agreeing to terms on a $1 million bonus from the Angels. He signed the deal May 30th, the deadline for clubs to come to terms with the last-ever crop of draft-and-follows.

After the Angels drafted the righthander in the 12th round last June, Walden turned down a scholarship from Texas and opted to attend Grayson County (Texas) Community College in order to keep his draft options open. Inconsistent as a high school senior, when his velocity dropped to 85-88 mph at times, Walden performed much better this spring. His fastball sat at 92-94 mph and peaked at 97. He also improved his slider and the command of his two primary pitches. He has a classic pitcher's build at 6-foot-5 and 225 pounds.

Grayson's coaches also got him to use his changeup more often and toned down his delivery, though it still has some stiffness. He closed his season by striking out 15 and carrying a no-hitter into the eighth inning of a regional playoff game.

Latos, coincidentally, was the opposing starting pitcher to Walden in the 2005 Aflac Classic in Aberdeen, Md., and similarly entered his senior season at Coconut Creek (Fla.) High last spring as one of the nation's best prep pitching prospects.

It appeared the Padres and Latos were at a standstill that wouldn�t be resolved before the May 30, 11:59 p.m. ET deadline to sign. Latos reportedly sought more than $3 million, while San Diego was offering significantly less. But the two sides got a deal done just hours before the deadline, with Latos receiving a bonus of $1.25 million, which his family confirmed.

Latos was the highest-ranked junior college player on Baseball America�s Top 200 Draft Prospects list, checking in at No. 32. He might have gone in the sandwich or second round out of high school last year, but his seven-figure price tag scared teams off. After the Padres selected him in the 11th round, Latos decided not to attend Oklahoma and instead went to Broward (Fla.) Community College, allowing him to negotiate with San Diego this spring and to re-enter the draft had he not come to terms.

A 6-foot-5, 205-pound righthander, Latos has a mid-90s fastball, a hard breaking ball and a promising changeup. He immediately becomes one of the best—if not the best—pitching prospects in the Padres system.

As anticipated, the Braves and Brewers were among the most active teams in terms of draft-and-follow signings. The Brewers landed two potential impact DFEs in righthander Chad Robinson, a 12th-rounder last year who played at CC of Southern Nevada, and outfielder Lee Haydel, a 19th-rounder who led Delgado (La.) CC to the NJCAA World Series. Robinson, who has topped out at 95 mph, signed for $500,000, while Haydel—whose tools resemble those of Red Sox farmhand Jacoby Ellsbury—signed for $624,000. Milwaukee also signed Seminole (Fla.) CC righthander Rob Bryson for $300,000.

The Braves signed six draft-and-follows, led by Western Nevada CC lefthander Cole Rohrbough. He also led his team to the NJCAA World Series, and Rohrbough signed for a reported $675,000 after his team was eliminated Wednesday, according to the Nevada Appeal in Reno, with $50,000 additionally thrown in for future college tuition. The Devil Rays also were active, signing six draft-and-follows, led by outfielder K.D. Kang out of Chattahoochee Valley (Ala.) CC. The Angels signed five draft-and-follows, including Walden and Okaloosa-Walton (Fla.) CC righthander Michael Davitt.

Another high-profile DFE that signed was the Mets' Phillips Orta, a righthander out of Western Nevada CC who was their 10th-round pick a year ago. Among other high-profile signings, the Pirates signed lefthander Rudy Owens out of Chandler-Gilbert (Ariz.) CC for $390,000, and the Indians gave 36th-round lefthander Ryan Miller of Blinn (Texas) JC $450,000.

Here's a complete list of draft-and-follow signings, which BA will update as more signings become known. Check Matt Eddy's Transaction Blog for signings as well.

DRAFT-AND-FOLLOWS

ARIZONA
Clayton Conner, 3b, Lurleen B. Wallace (Ala.) CC (45th round)

ATLANTA
Matt Small, rhp, Lake City (Fla.) CC (14th round)
Stephen Shults, 3b, Walters State (Tenn.) CC (15th round)
Clayton McMillan, lhp, Panola (Texas) JC (17th round)
Cole Rohrbough, lhp, Western Nevada CC (22nd round)
David Berres, of, South Suburban (Ill.) JC (30th round)
Eric Barrett, lhp, John A. Logan (Ill.) CC (31st round)
L.V. Ware, of, Okaloosa-Walton (Fla.) CC (43rd round)

BALTIMORE
Dustin Black, c, Cleveland State (Tenn.) CC (15th round)
Chris Salberg, lhp, Florida Atlantic (22nd round)
Drew Conklin, rhp, South Mountain (Ariz.) CC (33rd round)
Patrick Egan, rhp, Quinnipiac (36th round)
Jose Kianes, of, Palm Beach (Fla.) CC (43rd round)
Jason Mills, rhp, Kutztown (Pa.) (48th round)

BOSTON
Brantley New, rhp, Mercer (27th round)
Darren Blocker, 3b, Connors State (Okla.) JC (36th round)

CHICAGO (AL)
Sergio Morales, of, Broward (Fla.) CC (12th round)
Jedon Matthews, ss, San Diego CC (28th round)
Hector Santiago, lhp, Okaloosa-Walton (Fla.) CC (30th round)
Jordan Cheatham, of, Wabash Valley (Ill.) CC (43rd round)

CHICAGO (NL)
Jovan Rosa, ss, Lake City (Fla.) CC (22nd round)
Cedric Redmond, rhp, Oakton (Ill.) CC (27th round)
Brett Summers, rhp, South Suburban (Ill.) JC (28th round) (contract later voided)
Jordan Latham, rhp, JC of Southern Idaho (29th round)
Marcus Hatley, of, Palomar (Calif.) JC (39th round)

CINCINNATI
Tony Brown, of, Okaloosa-Walton (Fla.) CC (23rd round)
Todd Waller, 3b, Santa Fe (Fla.) CC (39th round)

CLEVELAND
Ryan Miller, lhp, Blinn (Texas) JC (36th round)
Travis Turek, rhp, Los Angeles Pierce JC (48th round)

COLORADO
Zack Murry, ss, Neosho County (Kan.) CC (19th round)
Scott Robinson, of, Okaloosa-Walton (Fla.) CC (30th round)

DETROIT
Brandon Johnson, rhp, Butler County (Kan.) CC (34th round)

FLORIDA
Kedrick Martin, lhp, Meridian (Miss.) CC (28th round)
Jonathan van Looy, lhp, Diablo Valley (Calif.) JC (29th round)
Eric Basurto, rhp, Chabot (Calif.) JC (33rd round)
William Jackel, rhp, Tallahassee (Fla.) CC (43rd round)
Mitch MacDonald, 3b, Monterey Peninsula (Calif.) JC (46th round)

HOUSTON
Rafael Parks, of, Georgia Military JC (29th round)
Axel Gonzalez, of, Wabash Valley (Ill.) CC (41st round)
Andy Launier, 1b, Sierra (Calif.) JC (49th round)

KANSAS CITY
Bryan Paukovits, rhp, San Diego Mesa (Calif.) JC (44th round)

LOS ANGELES (AL)
Jordan Walden, rhp, Grayson County (Texas) CC (12th round)
Michael Davitt, rhp, Okaloosa-Walton (Fla.) CC (29th round)
Dylan Lindsey, rhp, Broward (Fla.) CC (31st round)
Rian Kiniry, of, Broward (Fla.) CC (39th round)
Dwain Green, rhp, Chipola (Fla.) JC (44th round)
Timothy Brewer, lhp, Connors State (Okla.) JC (50th round) (contract later voided)

LOS ANGELES (NL)
Gorman Erickson, c, San Diego Mesa (Calif.) JC (15th round)

MILWAUKEE
Chad Robinson, rhp, CC of Southern Nevada (12th round)
Lee Haydel, of, Delgado (La.) CC (19th round)
Rob Bryson, rhp, Seminole (Fla.) CC (31st round)
Nick Tyson, rhp, Lake City (Fla.) CC (32nd round)
Bryan Crosby, 3b, Cleveland State (Tenn.) CC (44th round)

MINNESOTA
Chris Anderson, lhp, Northern Essex (Mass.) CC (18th round)
Michael Mopas, lhp, Cuesta (Calif.) JC (30th round)
Anthony Slama, rhp, San Diego (39th round)

NEW YORK (AL)
Tim Dennehy, lhp, Chandler-Gilbert (Ariz.) CC (26th round)

NEW YORK (NL)
Phillips Orta, rhp, Western Nebraska CC (10th round)

OAKLAND
Carlos Hernandez, lhp, West Valley (Calif.) JC (35th round)
Dante Love, c, San Diego CC (39th round)

PITTSBURGH
Ryan Kelly, rhp, Walters State (Tenn.) CC (26th round)
Rudy Owens, lhp, Chandler-Gilbert (Ariz.) CC (28th round)
Josue Peley, ss, Seminole State (Okla.) JC (35th round)
Devin Copley, rhp, Gulf Coast (Fla.) CC (43rd round)

ST. LOUIS
Mark Diapoules, rhp, Palm Beach (Fla.) CC (21st round)
LaCurtis Mayes, rhp, Riverside (Calif.) CC (23rd round)
D'Marcus Ingram, of, Pensacola (Fla.) JC (25th round)
Nick Additon, lhp, Indian River (Fla.) CC (47th round)

SAN DIEGO
Matt Latos, rhp, Broward (Fla.) CC (11th round)
Jeremy McBryde, rhp, Rose State (Okla.) JC (26th round)

SEATTLE
Brent Gaphardt, lhp, Delaware (21st round)
Tyson Gillies, of, Iowa Western CC (25th round)
Philip Roy, rhp, Miami-Dade CC South (39th round)
Robbie Dominguez, rhp, Cerritos (Calif.) JC (46th round)

TAMPA BAY
K.D. Kang, of, Chattahoochee Valley (Ala.) CC (15th round)
Robi Estrada, ss, El Camino (Calif.) JC (19th round)
Mark Thomas, c, Young Harris (Ga.) JC (22nd round)
Angel Chapa, rhp, JC of Southern Idaho (24th round)
Justin Reynolds, of, Mount Hood (Ore.) CC (31st round)
Michael Ross, 2b, Northwest Mississippi CC (35th round)

TEXAS
John Maschino, rhp, Seminole State (Okla.) JC (17th round) (contract later voided)
Derek Holland, lhp, Wallace State (Ala.) CC (25th round)
Eric Fry, of, San Jacinto (Texas) JC (33rd round)
Chris Dennis, rhp, Auburn (40th round)
Dan Sattler, rhp, Purdue (44th round)

TORONTO
Kevin Denis-Fortier, 1b, Crowder (Mo.) JC (38th round)

WASHINGTON
Brad Peacock, rhp, Palm Beach (Fla.) CC (41st round)

FIFTH-YEAR SENIORS

The following fifth-year seniors signed as nondrafted free agents prior to the draft.

ARIZONA
Jon Bjelland, lhp, Minnesota State-Mankato (contract later voided)
Konrad Schmidt, c, Nevada

BOSTON
Cody McAllister, rhp, Oklahoma City

CHICAGO (NL)
John Muller, rhp, St. Thomas Aquinas (N.Y.)

CLEVELAND
Justin Jenkins, of, West Virginia
Mark Rodrigues, lhp, Hawaii

COLORADO
Bobby Paschal, lhp, Cal State Northridge

FLORIDA
Andrew Alsup, rhp, Louisiana Tech
Mark Badgley, rhp, Northern Illinois
Chris Dunn, of, Florida International
Tony Snow, rhp, Oklahoma City

HOUSTON
Chris Frye, of, Louisiana State-Shreveport

KANSAS CITY
Justin Phillips, lhp, Harding (Ark.)
Jason Roach, lhp, Albertson (Idaho)
Ben Swaggerty, rhp, Tusculum (Tenn.)

LOS ANGELES (AL)
David Hurst, lhp, Florida

NEW YORK (AL)
Phil Bartleski, rhp, Oklahoma City
Alexy Still, rhp, Rowan (N.J.)
Kyle Thomas, lhp, California Baptist

PHILADELPHIA
Paige Dumont, rhp, Sonoma State (Calif.)
Matt German, lhp, Northern Illinois

ST. LOUIS
Justin Roberson, of, Cal State San Bernardino

SAN FRANCISCO
Garrett Baker, of, Dallas Baptist
Skyler Stromsmoe, 2b, Southern Arkansas
John White, 1b, Anderson (S.C.)

SEATTLE
Calvin Beamon, of, Nevada-Las Vegas
Kris Sanchez, 1b, Hawaii

TAMPA BAY
Brett Armour, rhp, Mesa State (Colo.)
Jeff Carroll, 3b, Cal State Los Angeles
Keith Nelson, lhp, Mesa State (Colo.)

TEXAS
Jordan Stewart, rhp, Avila (Mo.)