Nationals report
Beating the buzzer to sign
The Nationals signed top draft pick Lucas Giolito to a $2.925 million contract just minutes before a 5 p.m. deadline on Friday afternoon.
It is the fifth year in a row negotiations with their highest draft pick have gone down to the final minutes. But Washington has acquired a highly regarded right-hander who only slipped to their position at No. 16 because of an elbow injury suffered in the spring. Giolito was expected to be among the top-five picks on June 4 had he not been hurt.
And had he not signed, Giolito, 17, would have accepted a scholarship offer to UCLA and spent three years playing college baseball. Instead, he will continue to rehabilitate from his strained right elbow ligament and prepare to start his professional career. The 6-foot-6, 230-pounder was 9-1 with a 1.00 ERA in 701Ú3 innings for Harvard-Westlake School in Studio City, Calif. The Nats were allotted $2.125 million in bonus pool money for that pick by Major League Baseball under its revised slotting system and so must pay a tax. If they had tried to go above $3.034 million, they would have lost next year’s first-round draft pick. The Nats signed 23 of their first 24 draft picks and 29 overall.
“The [injury and financial] risk we felt was outweighed by the reward,” general manager Mike Rizzo said of Giolito on draft day.
MLB Storylines
1 Not used to being sellers » With the Phillies entering Saturday 15 games back in the NL East, Philadelphia likely will be sellers at the trade deadline. The reigning five-time division champions may be looking to move All-Star left-hander Cole Hamels — for a steep price — if they are unable to re-sign the soon-to-be free agent. And center fielder Shane Victorino, another looming free agent, may also be on the trade block. The second-oldest team in baseball needs to get younger, and one way of doing that is turning proven veterans into multiple prospects.
2 Feeling right at home » The Pittsburgh Pirates are at an unusual place atop the NL Central, but they feel real comfortable at PNC Park — where Pittsburgh owns the best home record (29-14) in baseball. All-Star center fielder Andrew McCutchen is hitting .386 and right-hander James McDonald is 5-1 with a 1.69 ERA at home. PNC Park has been one of the nicest ballparks since it opened in 2001, and now fans finally have something to cheer about. Expect those attendance figures (the Pirates rank 23rd in the majors) to jump if the Pirates can stay in the playoff hunt.
3 Fielding questions » If the Baltimore Orioles are going to continue to contend for a playoff spot, they are going to have to improve their defense. The Orioles entered Saturday with a major league-leading 76 errors. While J.J. Hardy is one of the best defensive shortstops in the league, Robert Andino has more errors (12) than any other second baseman. With Brian Roberts returning last month, he should help the middle of the infield. But Andino hasn’t been the only problem. Center fielder Adam Jones and catcher Matt Wieters also have the most errors at their positions.
Who’s hot?
1. Andruw Jones » The Yankees outfielder hit four homers in his last three games before the break.
2. A.J. Burnett » The 35-year-old Pirates right-hander is 10-2 and hasn’t lost a start since May 2.
3. Joe Mauer » The Twins catcher hit .397 in June and had a .329 batting average overall entering Saturday.
Who’s not?
1. Ervin Santana » The Angels right-hander allowed eight runs in his last start and has a 5.75 ERA.
2. Dan Uggla » The Braves second baseman had just two hits in hits first 26 at-bats in July.
3. Mike Napoli » The Rangers All-Star catcher has hit just one home run since June 10.
