The White Sox don't return home until Tuesday, so they couldn't afford Nick Madrigal the usual experience a first-round pick receives -- signing a contract in Chicago, taking batting practice, throwing out the first pitch, etc.
Today's the deadline for 2018 draft picks to reach an agreement, so fanfare had to back a backseat to pragmatism. Madrigal signed for slot value -- $6,411,400 -- to join the fold, and the White Sox announced it with a press release and a conference call with reporters.
The White Sox also agreed to deals with 14th-rounder Davis Martin out of Texas Tech ($130,000, or $5,000 against pool) and 33rd-rounder Bryce Bush, who was assumed to be a tough sign away from Mississippi State. Alec Valenzuela, selected by he Sox took in the 34th round, told FutureSox he's heading to junior college, but 34 out of the first 35 is a pretty good conversion rate.
* * *
Madrigal told reporters he still felt fresh considering he missed half of Oregon State's title run with a wrist injury, saying, "I only need a couple days to swing the wood bat, get used to this. But yeah, I'm I'm ready to go."
He said he's going to play in the Arizona Rookie League a few days, after which he'll head to Kannapolis on Sunday. He's starting at shortstop at both levels.
Some other notes from the call:
Whether his height has affected his mindset: "I've always worked extremely hard, even in practice, all year long. When I get on the field I feel I'm the best player out there. I've understood from a young age there's always going to be people saying different things and not always on your side. I've always embraced that. I wouldn't even call it a chip on my shoulder. I just accept what I have."
On shortstop or second: "It doesn't really matter to me, and I do mean that."
On his plate discipline: "In the cage, I try to stay disciplined, but I also try to hit pitches outside the strike zone. Umpires sometimes are all over the place, so I really try to not let them take control and leave it in their hands."
On his power: "My job is to get on base. I've always played that way. I'm going to steal bases, I'm going to hit balls in the gap. I'm not going to change my game at all. I do believe that I'm going to hit for more power. In the offseason I'm going to push myself to lift heavier and things like that. I feel confident I believe that's going to come here soon, but I do understand that some guys get paid to do that. I understand my game is a little bit different."
(He delivered this answer while somebody had Spanish TV or radio blaring in the background.)
On Chicago: "Just driving around the city and seeing the whole layout of everything, I could definitely see that being a home for me, and somewhere I want to win for and hopefully bring a parade back to that city one day."
* * *
And just like that, Madrigal was playing his first game in triple-digit heat down in the Arizona Rookie League on Thursday night.
He came to the plate three times, getting clipped his first time up ...
https://twitter.com/Cu_As/status/1015060088099225600
... after which he was picked off. He was plunked again his third time up. The one time he got a chance to swing the bat in between, he grounded out.
https://twitter.com/SeanW1754/status/1015063387967909888
Madrigal scored on his second trip on the basepaths, after which he was done for the day. The box score shows Madrigal committing an error, but the aforementioned Kim Contreras and Sean Williams, along with Baseball America's Bill Mitchell, all pointed out a diving stop to start a 6-4-3 double play.
