The Pirates did not sign Florida prep righty Gunnar Hoglund, the 36th overall pick in the June amateur draft, before Friday’s deadline despite Hoglund saying publicly last month that he and the Pirates had agreed to a deal.
“We had conviction that we would be able to sign Gunnar when we made the selection but as the signing process evolved, it became clear that Gunnar viewed attending [the] University of Mississippi as the best decision for him at this point in his life,” Pirates amateur scouting director Joe DelliCarri said in a statement. “We respect that decision and wish Gunnar all the best in his future.”
The Pirates lost $1,967,900, Hoglund’s slot value, from their $10,390,400 bonus pool, which includes bonuses given to players selected in the top 10 rounds and any bonus in rounds 11-40 exceeding $125,000. They signed every other player selected in the top 10 rounds and, after signing 13th-rounder Zack Kone out of Duke Friday, 33 of their 41 picks. According to bonus figures on MLB.com's draft tracker, the Pirates exceeded their available bonus pool by $421,100, or 4.9997 percent. Exceeding the pool by more than 5 percent triggers the loss of a future draft pick.
“It was a crazy process,” Hoglund told the Tampa Bay Times June 5, the day after he was drafted. “They called to see if they could get something worked out and then we agreed to the deal. It was a long night.”
The Pirates will receive the 37th overall pick in the 2019 draft as compensation.
Hoglund is the second prep pitcher taken with a competitive balance pick in three years not to sign with the Pirates. Lefty Nick Lodolo, who went 41st overall in 2016, honored his commitment to TCU.
Bill Brink: bbrink@post-gazette.com and Twitter @BrinkPG.
First Published: July 6, 2018, 11:09 p.m.
