Just in case you missed it: The Nationals failed to sign their first round draft pick Aaron Crow. The whole draft signing process isn’t as open to examination as I’d like it to be, but the time line is being reconstructed. For example, here is mlbtraderumors.com’s summary.
Crow not signing is unfortunate both for the Nationals and the young pitcher, himself. For the Nats part, they are missing out on a marque pitcher, a new face that the franchise so desperately needs. BaseballAmerica.com’s scouting report on Crow stated:
In three years, Crow has gone from an undrafted high school senior to the best righthander in the 2008 draft, thanks largely to the best fastball package available. Other pitchers may throw harder, but no one can match the combination of Crow’s velocity (92-96 mph with a peak of 98), hard sink, command and ability to maintain his fastball.
The Nationals pitching staff could have used Crow’s talent, if not this year, certainly by the 2009 season. Now instead of solving one of their weakest points through the draft, the Nats will have to look to free agency and other internal options to fill out their rotation.
For his part, Crow will miss out on an opportunity to pitch in the Majors this year for the Nationals. He also will earn very little money, and risk injuring himself for next year’s draft. Even though similar tactics worked out for Luke Hochevar of the Royals and Max Scherzer of the Diamondbacks, Crow is risking his future by not signing in the 2008 draft. Finally, Crow will miss out on achieving every little leaguer’s dream: to play in the Major Leagues; I’m not sure I would be able to turn that same opportunity down.
I’m not sure who to blame for Crow not signing, but there seems to have been plenty of problems on all sides. Ultimately, the reality of signing draft picks is that not all of them will sign. Baseball is a business, and fans have to accept the fact that not all deals will be made. But for Crow and the Nationals, both sides have lost a great opportunity to improve their situation. The fact that a deal between Crow and the Nationals came down to a $900,000.00 difference eventually will cause one of the parties to regret the impasse.