The New York Mets‘ draft strategy paid off. Essentially, the team grabbed two first-rounders with their first and second round picks, respectively: outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and one of the best pitching talents in the event in J.T. Ginn.
Ginn was widely considered as a first-round talent by scouts and talent evaluators around the league. The Mets announced last night that they signed him to an over-slot deal of $2.9 million, when slot value indicated that his value was around $1.4 million.
The New York Mets certainly took a risk by selecting Ginn, as they knew he wasn’t likely to accept slot value given that he is confident in his talent despite seeing his stock fall due to Tommy John surgery.
So why were the Mets able to offer Ginn so much money? Because they managed to ink under-slot deals with their final four selections, freeing space in the budget to offer Ginn something close to first-round value. They saved $1.1 million in extra funds to offer the hurler, and they threw some more money to reach the final number, $2.9 million.
The Mets did some cash maneuvering
All in all, the Mets had roughly $7.1 million in Draft pool money to spend and they went over by a little less than 5 percent. They will face a money penalty, but it won’t be significant. It is expected, per MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo, to be less than $300,000. If they had offered more, they could have been slapped with the loss of a future selection.
Crow-Armstrong, the Mets’ first-rounder, signed a $3.36 million deal.
General Manager Brodie Van Wagenen praised Ginn, who was picked 52nd overall, during the draft, saying he was a “premium talent that is going to require real investment in terms of dollars.â€
The Mississippi State star had a 3.13 ERA in 17 starts as a freshman, and fired six scoreless frames in a College World Series vs. Louisville.
Ginn won’t pitch in the 2020 season as he recovers from the elbow reconstruction surgery, but when healthy, he can flash upper-90s gas and two other decent pitches.