Nationals Farm Authority

The signing of players drafted in 2006 has an expiration date. If the player attends a four-year college, the club’s negotiating rights are lost as soon as the player enters his first class at the end of the summer.

I’ve split the group up into those I know are scheduled to attend 4-year colleges/universities (along with those I do not know the status):

And here are the draft-and-follow candidates, the Nationals have until one week prior to the 2007 draft to sign them:

If the players are not signed and report to their first class, the Nationals lose the right to sign them. Teams typically will focus on getting around half of their draft class signed (roughly 25 guys, which is exactly where the Nationals are as of 8/19). Roster sizes dictate the number of players a team get realistically sign. When you add the players from the Dominican Summer Leagues, the spots fill up. Most of the second day of the draft is spent assembling a class of draft-and-follow-candidates (this year Rounds 20-50 took place on day two).

However, teams do typically hope to sign most of their first 10 rounds, when possible. The Nationals currently have 7 of their 12 players selected in rounds 1-10 under contract. The outstanding candidates are Sean Black (2nd round committed to Seton Hall), Sam Brown (7th round committed to NC State), Joey Rosas (9th round), and Marcus Salmon (10th round). I now know that both Rosas and Salmon are draft-and-follow candidates, so if they are signed, it will not be until shortly before the 2007 draft. That leaves Black and Brown as the ones to watch.