bd811
06-07-2002, 01:07 PM
The White Sox have reached agreement with first-round draft pick Royce Ring and are expected to announce his signing this weekend.
Ring will receive a $1.6 million bonus, according to sources, and will arrive in Chicago on Sunday to meet with management and the media. The 21-year-old left-handed closer from San Diego State said on draft day he wanted to get a deal done quickly. "I'm not a guy trying to make a record-breaking deal," Ring said.
Ring, picked 18th overall, was one of 13 pitchers the Sox selected with their first 17 picks, continuing a philosophy general manager Ron Schueler instituted years ago. The Sox believe that by stockpiling the system with arms, they'll have enough depth to make trades if they need to fill holes elsewhere.
"Normally the way we've looked at it is that the quality of position players in the last few years has diminished some," scouting director Doug Laumann said. "Some clubs' philosophy is to go ahead and take a position player because there are fewer of them and they have the urgency to go get them, feeling like, `Maybe we can grab a pitcher later.' We feel like the draft is in a pitching-strength position, so we should go ahead and deal from that position."
Since becoming general manager in October 2000, Ken Williams has traded pitchers Mike Sirotka, James Baldwin, Kip Wells, Josh Fogg, Sean Lowe, Scott Eyre and Aaron Myette, among others. Williams also tried to trade Jon Garland to Anaheim last December, but the deal for Darin Erstad fell apart at the last minute.
Ring will receive a $1.6 million bonus, according to sources, and will arrive in Chicago on Sunday to meet with management and the media. The 21-year-old left-handed closer from San Diego State said on draft day he wanted to get a deal done quickly. "I'm not a guy trying to make a record-breaking deal," Ring said.
Ring, picked 18th overall, was one of 13 pitchers the Sox selected with their first 17 picks, continuing a philosophy general manager Ron Schueler instituted years ago. The Sox believe that by stockpiling the system with arms, they'll have enough depth to make trades if they need to fill holes elsewhere.
"Normally the way we've looked at it is that the quality of position players in the last few years has diminished some," scouting director Doug Laumann said. "Some clubs' philosophy is to go ahead and take a position player because there are fewer of them and they have the urgency to go get them, feeling like, `Maybe we can grab a pitcher later.' We feel like the draft is in a pitching-strength position, so we should go ahead and deal from that position."
Since becoming general manager in October 2000, Ken Williams has traded pitchers Mike Sirotka, James Baldwin, Kip Wells, Josh Fogg, Sean Lowe, Scott Eyre and Aaron Myette, among others. Williams also tried to trade Jon Garland to Anaheim last December, but the deal for Darin Erstad fell apart at the last minute.