HOUSTON — The Astros officially announced the signing of Georgia prep outfielder Daz Cameron on Tuesday, the 37th overall pick in the first-year player draft.
Cameron, son of three-time Gold Glove winner Mike Cameron, was a consensus top-10 prospect entering the draft but sank due to signability concerns. But like they did in 2012, when they signed top overall selection Carlos Correa to a bonus well under slot, the Astros effectively manipulated their signing bonus allotment to ink a prospect haul most industry insiders consider the best of the 2015 draft class.
When the Astros signed Correa for $4.8 million three summers ago, $2.4 million below his slot value, it allowed them to sign prep standouts Lance McCullers and Rio Ruiz for $2.5 million and $1.85 million respectively, totals well above their assigned slot values of $1.26 million and $360,200. Both Correa and McCullers were called up this season and are contributing to the first-place Astros.
“It’s a difficult strategy to execute because you want to be careful not to trade off too much with the first pick,” said Astros scouting director Mike Elias. “In 2012 when we did it with Correa, we felt this was a guy who might actually really be the best player in the draft, and to be able to get him at the value we got him at and be able to sign a couple other players with that money was icing on the cake, a bonus, but also a sense that if things don’t play out that way or as well at least you’ve got some other players on top of it, too.”
By signing second overall pick Alex Bregman and fifth overall selection Kyle Tucker under slot (by a combined savings of $1.71 million), the Astros set aside enough money to sign Cameron for $4 million, well over his slot value. By manipulating their bonus pool so expertly, the Astros still have enough to perhaps offer a pick outside the 10th round (notably prep pitchers Patrick Sandoval and Cole Sands) a bonus significantly above slot, further strengthening an already banner crop.
“In terms of maximizing our resources and our output on the day of the draft sitting there and looking at the class on paper, it’s far beyond my expectations for that day,” Elias said. “If this is our last year having an extremely large bonus pool like we’ve had the last four years, this was certainly the way to end that part of our process.”
