Royals Sign Ryan McDonagh, Canadian Righthander Up To 95 MPH This Spring
The Royals signed rigthhander Ryan McDonagh to a $425,000 deal as an undrafted free agent over the weekend.
McDonagh, a Canadian-born pitcher, was eligible for the 2024 draft but went unselected. That season he had a fastball that typically topped out in the low 90s.
Early this spring while pitching for the Ontario Blue Jays against big leaguers in spring training, the 6-foot-5, 200-pound righthander showed much more velocity, pitching in the 92-94 mph range and touching 95 with his fastball. He was also showing a slider in the upper 70s and a mid-80s changeup.
To sign McDonagh, the Royals needed to tap into their 2024 bonus pool. After signing day for the 2024 class, the Royals had spent $13,394,600 of their $13,023,300 bonus pool—a 2.9% overage.
Under draft rules, teams are able to spend up to 5% over their bonus pool without incurring draft pick penalties. That’s a threshold that most teams are willing to spend up to most years.
Of McDonagh’s $425,000 bonus, $275,000 counts towards the Royals’ 2024 bonus pool. That total pushes Kansas City’s total signing bonus allotment to $13,669,600, or a 4.96% bonus pool overage.
McDonagh’s UDFA price tag is significant, though it doesn’t quite top the largest UDFA bonus on record.
That title belongs to Nevada outfielder TJ Friedl, who signed with the Reds as an undrafted free agent in 2016 for $735,000 after a standout performance with USA Baseball’s college national team. Bobby Kielty signed with the Twins for $500,000 in 1999 after a standout performance in the Cape Cod League, but that was before the bonus pool era placed restrictions on how much teams could spend.
