UPDATE: There was a question as to compensation for the lost 3rd round pick, and I have confirmed that we’d get a pick in a new compensatory round between the 3rd and 4th round if we didn’t sign Workman, we wouldn’t get the same pick (ie, the 12th) in next year’s draft.

That’s the big question we face, with the signing deadline tomorrow. It’s nothing new at this point, our two best unsigned prospects are Brandon Workman and Julian Sampson, both RHP. Workman is a 3rd round pick, and if he doesn’t sign, the Phillies receive a compensation pick in next year’s draft, which I believe will come between the 3rd and 4th rounds. If Sampson does not sign, the Phillies receive nothing but a thank you note from the Commish. If you’ve been following my blog and my writings, you know where I stand on this. As a front office, you have two decisions; you either play by the unofficial rules, or you do what you want. The Commissioners Office makes recommendations on slot bonuses, but if you follow the proper path, you can sign a player for whatever you want. A lot of teams do not go against the wishes of the Commissioner, but some teams do, and the most notable team of late is the Detroit Tigers.

Continue reading One day to go, will they or won’t they? →

The August 15th deadline is just 2 days away, and the Phillies two best unsigned prospects remain Brandon Workman and Julian Sampson. An article in the CourierPostOnline this morning said this

Phils work to sign players: In terms of the big picture, the Phillies have been very successful signing their top 30 draft picks in each of the last two seasons. This year, with the August 15 deadline looming, they are six short of a perfect 30-for-30 with a pair of big prizes still on the board.

The Philies No. 3 pick Brandon Workman – a 6-foot-4 right hander – and No. 12 pick Julian Sampson – a 6-foot-5 right hander – remain unsigned with college commitments in their back pockets. The two high school pitchers could push this draft over the top but that remains to be seen as the deadline will strike at 11:59 est.

“I think the best way to put this is we’re working on multiples,” assistant general manager Mike Arbuckle said. “In the end, it comes down to who is willing to sign.

“(Scouting director Marti Wolever and his staff) are prepared to work right up to that final minute. You’d like to sign every draft choice but, for example, a third-round talent has to be willing to be paid third-round dollars. We have to decide to direct dollars to get the most done.”

Workman is set to attend the University of Texas and seemed to be picked higher than most teams would have been willing to go. Sampson meanwhile according to one scouting report has “a good arm, good mechanics and the kind of projection scouts look for in high school pitchers.”

The Phillies have labored in the lower end of farm systems and have attempted to replenish a very thin system over the past two seasons. To that end, they drafted 31 pitchers in their 52 selections.

It looks like we’ll just have to see how much resolve Workman and Sampson have. 3rd round money is in the $500k range, and my gut tells me that Sampson wants more like $750k. The Phillies would be best served to take the money for Workman, plus a few dollars, and give it to Sampson. If they do this and don’t sign Workman, they get another 3rd rounder next season as compensation. We’ll see what happens, stay tuned.

The dust has settled a bit, there are a few big unknowns remaining. How would you rate or grade this draft? You can give two assessments;

1. We sign no one else

2. We sign either Workman, Sampson, Moncrief, etc etc, or we sign a combination of them.

Feel free to explain your answers. It’s impossible to really know how things will shake out for 3 or 4 years, but we can assess what we know so far.