Red Sox reportedly agree to terms with Denney for $875k

According to Jim Callis of Baseball America, the Red Sox have agreed to terms with third-round pick Jon Denney. Callis reports that Denney would receive an $875,000 signing bonus, well below what some projections thought it would take to sign Denney out of his commitment to Arkansas.

Denney was thought to be a day-one talent entering the draft, ranked among the top 25 players available by both Baseball America and Perfect Game. It was thought that he fell in part due to signability, but at the number he signed for, perhaps teams had inaccurate information regarding the bonus he would sign for. The $875,000 figure is $203,800 higher than slot value for the 81st pick, where he was selected, but given that some projections estimated it may take as much as $1.5 million to sign him, he represents an outstanding value given where he was selected.

Denney's calling card is his plus raw power from the right side and great batspeed. He is seen as a bit raw behind the plate, but is seen as possessing the tools to stay behind the plate as well as a strong arm. If not, his offensive profile would fit at another position, although he may need to tone down his aggressive approach. Upon signing, he would likely report to the Gulf Coast League.

Denney's signing begins to bring things into focus with regard to what and how many players the Red Sox will be able to sign from this year's draft class. In addition to announcing the Denney signing, Baseball America has updated its draft tracker to report that ninth-round pick Kyle Martin, a right-handed pitcher out of Texas A&M, has signed for $10,000, more than $100,000 below slot. The club has also reportedly signed right-handed pitcher Joe Gunkel, who will report to the Gulf Coast League. A number of other players have not officially signed, but are in the process of finalizing their deals. We will report on those as official details come in.

The team is now reportedly below its allotted slot value for the picks it has signed, giving the club the monetary ammunition to go after some tough signs selected after the tenth round. Below is a list of players the club has either signed or reportedly agreed to terms with, with slot values and reported bonus figures where available.

2. Teddy Stankiewicz, RHP - $1,100,000 (slot: $1,229,600)

3. Jon Denney, C - $875,000 (slot: $671,200)

8. Forrestt Allday, CF - bonus unreported (slot: $152,200)

9. Kyle Martin, RHP - $10,000 (slot: $142,200)

10. Taylor Grover, RHP - $10,000 (slot: $137,400)

11. Carlos Asuaje, 2B

14. Jake Romanski, C

18. Joe Gunkel, RHP

19. Gabe Speier, LHP - $200,000 ($100,000 counts against draft cap)

21. Reed Gragnani, 2B

Amount over/under bonus pool based on reported signings: $85,400 under

Amount over/under bonus pool+5%: $426,910 under

Photo credit: Jon Denney by Perfect Game

Chris Hatfield is the Executive Editor of SoxProspects.com. Follow him on Twitter at @SPChrisHatfield.

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