When it comes to draft pick signings, O's have moved fast

When the Orioles announced two more draft pick signings on Thursday afternoon, that brought their total to 29 signed picks out of the 41 they selected in the recent First-Year Player Draft. That is an impressive total to have wrapped up this soon.

This will definitely benefit the individual players. By signing fast, they can get their pro careers started sooner and begin learning the pro game and impressing their new organization faster. Signing quickly is almost always good for the player.

So far, the Orioles have signed 12 pitchers and 17 position players. They have signed five lefty pitchers and seven right-handers, along with six infielders, six outfielders, four catchers and one utility player.

The Orioles announced the signings of 27 players on Wednesday. On Thursday, they added two more - Canadian high school infielder Adam Hall, taken in round 2, and high school outfielder Lamar Sparks, taken in round 5.

Various sources have reported signing bonus information for some of the Orioles' top picks and here are the amounts that have been reported:

* Round 2 - Infielder Adam Hall, a bonus of $1.3 million, which is over slot by $231,300.

* Competitive Balance B - Left-hander Zac Lowther got an exact slot bonus of $779,500.

* Round 3 - Right-hander Michael Baumann, a bonus of $500,000, which is under slot by $47,700.

* Round 5 - Outfielder Lamar Sparks, got an exact slot amount of $304,800.

The Orioles drafted five college seniors in rounds six through 10 and all were signed to bonuses of $10,000 or less. College seniors have little bargaining leverage (they cannot return to play in school) and often sign for smaller amounts. The savings there can be used to go over slot for other picks in the top 10 rounds - or potentially for picks taken after that. In all, the Orioles selected 14 college seniors and they have signed all 14.

The Orioles have signed 14 of their top 16 picks in the draft's first 15 rounds. They soon should go 16-for-16 here. Left unsigned, but possibly not for much longer, is their top pick, high school lefty DL Hall, taken No. 21 overall. Also unsigned is their round 4 pick, high school right-hander Jack Conlon, taken No. 128 overall. The slot amounts are $2,892,400 for the No. 21 spot and $409,000 for the No. 128 spot.

The Orioles, as I have written multiple times now, made quick progress in negotiations with Hall and absolutely expect to sign their top pick. They look good to get Conlon, too. Both could be signed within the next week. Hall could get an over slot bonus and his representative is Scott Boras.

The Orioles will probably end up signing 32 or 33 total draft picks. Two they are unlikely to get are high school pitcher Logan Allen (round 16) and high school infielder Greg Jones (round 17). Both players fell hard down the draft due to signability concerns and the O's took fliers on both. If the Orioles were not able to sign one of their highest picks, they might have had a better shot at either Allen or Jones, but they are expected to get all of the top selections.

In the 2016 draft, the Orioles selected 41 players and signed 34. They got their first 17 picks and 24 of their first 25 selections. This year, they should end up getting their first 16. In the 2016 draft, the Orioles selected 27 pitchers and signed 23.

A look at the 29 signed draft picks

Round 2: IF Adam Hall
CB-B pick: LHP Zac Lowther
Round 3: RHP Michael Baumann
Round 5: OF Lamar Sparks
Round 6: IF Mason McCoy
Round 7: C Ben Breazeale
Round 8: RHP Jimmy Murphy
Round 9: OF T.J. Nichting
Round 10: RHP Josh Keaton
Round 11: UT Trevor Craport
Round 12: LHP Tucker Baca
Round 13: RHP Reed Hayes
Round 14: LHP Cameron Ming
Round 15: 1B JC Escarra
Round 18: OF Jacob Brown
Round 20: RHP Scott Burke
Round 21: C Jose Montanez
Round 22: C Luke Ringhofer
Round 23: C Bryndan Arredondo
Round 25: 3B Willy Yahn
Round 27: RHP Nick Vichio
Round 28: OF Zach Jarrett
Round 29: LHP Matt Hammonds
Round 30: OF Will Robertson
Round 31: OF Robbie Thorburn
Round 32: 2B Max Hogan
Round 33: LHP Ryan Wilson
Round 34: RHP Tim Naughton
Round 36: SS Tyler Coolbaugh