Red Sox don’t sign second-rounder Jud Fabian, defer pick to 2022 draft
The Red Sox and their second-round draft pick, Jud Fabian, were unable to come to a contract agreement. Boston selected Fabian with the No. 40 overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft that took place in July. Instead of heading to the pros, Fabian is returning to the University of Florida for his senior season.
https://twitter.com/judfabe/status/1421596443698208772?s=20
“It’s disappointing that we weren’t able to sign Jud,” Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom told MLB.com. “We knew it was possible going in. We knew that if we were unable to sign him, we would be able to get the pick again next year. That made it worth the risk in our minds.”
It is common in the MLB draft for teams and prospects to not come to a contract agreement. Although this isn’t what Red Sox fans wanted to hear, not all is lost. Based on the MLB’s rules, Boston will receive a compensatory draft pick next year. It will be No. 41 overall, just one spot lower than where they took Fabian.
Some players deny the offer to return to school. Others turn it down because of finances. In Fabian’s case, it seems like it is the latter.
Fabian was considered a first round pick heading into his junior year at Florida. After a solid, but not too impressive season, his draft stock dipped a bit and allowed the Red Sox to steal the outfielder in the second. Despite that, two teams behind Boston in the draft were offering Fabian $3 million and the Sox were not willing to go that high, according to Peter Gammons.
The slot value for the No. 40 pick is $1.86 million, which is considerably less than what Fabian was asking for.
The Red Sox signed 16 of their 20 draft picks, including all of their other selections in the first ten rounds. They did not sign 13th-round pick Zach Ehrhard, 15th-round pick Payton Green and 20th-round pick Josh Hood. According to the Boston Globe’s Alex Speier, Fabian is the highest Boston draft pick to not sign with the team since Greg McMurty was taken with the No. 14 overall pick in 1986.
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