:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/14937519/gyi0063259355.0.jpg)
According to Baseball America's Ben Badler, the Mets have officially signed their second-round selection, right-handed pitcher Andrew Church:
#Mets sign 2nd-rder Andrew Church for $850k. Nevada HS RHP has 90-95 fastball, flashes plus curve, San Diego recruit. #mlbdraft
— Jim Callis (@jimcallisBA) June 17, 2013
Mets Draft Pick Results Tracker
Scouting reports and signing statuses for all 41 picks.
Interestingly, the Mets were slotted for $1,138,800 with their second-round pick -- giving them a nearly $300,000 windfall. In full, the Mets were budgeted $6,990,000 to spread out over the first ten rounds, meaning that they've just saved over 4% of their total budget that can be allocated elsewhere. However, it's fair to say that those dollars are already spent, in order to cover the record-setting dollar value committed to 11th-rounder Tyler Bashlor.
In terms of the player, Church is a mid-sized righty who's short on polish, but long big arm strength. BA ranked him as the 89th-best draft prospect, while ESPN Insider tabbed him at no. 75. Here's a snippet from his draft scouting report:
"Church has a high ceiling, roughly that of a number two starter, but he’s very, very raw, even by prep pitcher standards. With more experience and superior coaching, Church should be able to take a step forward, but if he isn’t able to clean up his mechanics or find a consistent breaking ball, there’s an excellent chance he’ll end up pitching in relief, if he’s lucky enough to make the majors at all. High risk, high reward."
In terms of repertoire the 18-year-old features a fastball that's been known to touch 95 MPH -- and not a lot else. Having missed quite a bit of time in high school to transfer issues, Church is extremely raw. Over at ESPN Insider, Keith Law characterized Church as "more arm strength than polished product, sitting 90-94 with some late life up," though he has limited feel for his curveball and slider.
