June 30th, 2019 at 8:00 am 
by 0799291000348 Why are July 20 and July 31, 2019 important for the Dodgers?
According to the current Major League Baseball Rule Book, each team has 45 days from the conclusion of the MLB First-Year Player Draft to sign the players they selected in that year’s Draft. That would give the Dodgers until 5:00 PM (ET) on July 20 to sign their selections or forfeit their rights to those unsigned players.
According to unconfirmed reports, the Dodgers have not yet signed several of their 2019 Draft selections, in particular their second overall pick of the first round – first baseman Michael Busch, a junior out of the University of North Carolina – and their second-round supplemental pick – right-handed pitcher Jimmy Lewis, a senior out of Lake Travis High School in Austin, Texas.
(Photo credit – Julio Cortez)
The Dodgers executives are masters at using every available dollar of their MLB pre-determined signing pool money to resupply their deep and talented minor league system.
Each pick of the first 10 rounds of the Draft has an assigned value, for example, Michael Busch’s slot value is $2,312,000, while Jimmy Lewis’ value is $793,000. There is no doubt that the Dodgers will have to significantly exceed Lewis’ assigned value in order for him to sign and forego his college commitment to Louisiana State University, and there is one report that Busch is also expecting a larger signing bonus than his slot value.
The only way to pay more to some players is to pay less to other players selected in the Draft. Exceeding the signing pool comes with penalties depending on the total amount of bonuses paid, including the loss of future draft picks for the most egregious over-spenders. Should a team not sign one of the players it selects in the first 10 rounds of the Draft, they lose the slot amount for that player.
By now all Dodgers fans are aware of the July 31, 2019 trade deadline recently agreed to by MLB and the MLB Players Association. Although it is still possible to acquire players after July 31, it would be a complicated procedure and the rules give MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred the unilateral right to void any deal that circumvents the rule or the spirit of the rule.
(Photo credit – Ron Cervenka)
As each day passes, the July 31 trade deadline becomes more important for those teams that are clearly contending for postseason play. The Dodgers needs are well known, but there could also be some surprises as the team aggressively pursues their goal of becoming 2019 World Champions.
Who might the Dodgers target and for which players / prospects? Ah, the subject of another article.
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Great article, Jesse!
Didn’t surprise me that it would take significantly more money to sign that Lewis kid (will definitely have to go at least $200K above-slot to do it), but it did surprise me that Busch was looking for more as well. Someone should remind that Tar Heel that had he been drafted with a true position already locked down prior, he would’ve been taken much earlier in the 1st round instead of slipping to No. 31 the way he did. I get the feeling if push comes to shove, Dodgers will end up up cutting their losses with him, take the 2020 comp pick (heard next year’s draft is gonna be a VERY deep one, too), and go all-in on signing the more promising Lewis instead. I do pray Busch finally sees reason and signs ASAP. Not many get the honor and privilege to be drafted by a perennial WS contender with one of the top farm systems around, either.
As for the trade deadline, it’s Felipe Vasquez or “bust” for me. If they can do it without coughing up Lux, May, or even Gray then it’s all good!
I expect Busch to sign, but perhaps not until the 11th hour. If he returns to school for his senior season his bargaining leverage next year is nil, unless he wants to play in Japan, or another foreign professional league. Lewis was considered to be a tough sign prior to the draft and to your point, the Dodgers may be OK with losing him and getting the compensatory pick in a deeper talent pool. Footnote: Busch is considered to be a very fine defensive first baseman, it is the scout’s “guess” that Dodgers will try him at second base.
You know, I think the real issue with Busch holding out is that he probably didn’t like how he was compared to Max Muncy when he got drafted and is secretly pouting by demanding more money to get signed. Otherwise, there would be no other reason for him in particular to carry on like this. Probably didn’t take too kindly to the Dodgers announcing him as a 2B when 1B was hands-down his best defensive position heading into the draft for that matter. I can understand that easily if it turns out to be the case. Still, I’d very much like to see him get signed at the end of the day because he’s not really dealing from a position of leverage at this point as you’ve clearly stated. That’s why I said they’re better off pursuing that Lewis kid in full force instead if talks with Busch end up stalling and they just settle for the 2020 comp pick. Can never have enough quality pitching depth in that farm system, anyway.
Btw, any other news regarding the remaining late-round draftees that were also considered tough signs due to their strong college commitments? Out of that bunch, I feel that Josh Ibarra kid might be able to be lured away at the last minute…
I hope they both sign, an accomplished college hitter, with 60 grade power at age 21, and a plus defender at first base along with a high school pitcher with potential, but 4 years away from pitching for the Dodgers. No, I have not read or heard anything about Ibarra, but with his talent he could pitch for UCI one year and be eligible for the 2020 draft and likely a lot more money.
let him go if he wants more and pay his money to the pitcher and use thhe rest to sign some more players who are not greedy….draft is deep next year ,,,,we cant lose.
UPDATE! According to MLBTR, July 12 at 5:00 PM Eastern Time Eastern Time is the deadline for signing this year’s draft class. MLB rules state 45 days (July 20), but later in the rules specifies July 12. My bad!
Well, with Busch finally in the system at long last that leaves “Texas” Lewis about a week to ponder the well above-slot offer the Dodgers have probably given him already. Due to Busch taking the full-slot value of his signing bonus, I’d be surprised if Lewis doesn’t end up signing before the deadline at this point. Still holding out hope they might just have enough wiggle room left in the budget to coax at least one of those tough late-round draftees away from the college of their choice, but if they end up getting Lewis taken care of anyway I’d consider that a welcome bonus for that matter.
😉