Houston wasted no time getting its top pick under contract. Jack Radel, the Notre Dame right-hander the Astros took with the 28th overall pick, agreed to a $3 million signing bonus, according to MLB Draft insider Jim Callis. That figure actually comes in a little under the assigned slot value of $3,363,600, meaning Houston pocketed some savings to spread around the rest of its draft class.
Jim Callis broke the signing news, noting Radel's fastball rides up to 98 mph with feel for a five-pitch mix.
Radel isn't your typical projectable prep arm looking for developmental time — he just finished being Notre Dame's Friday night starter. The Sioux Falls, South Dakota native turned in an 8-3 record with a 3.29 ERA and 116 strikeouts across 87 2/3 innings in 15 starts this past season, his junior year with the Fighting Irish. That workload made him the highest-drafted Notre Dame pitcher since Aaron Heilman went No. 18 overall back in 2001.
The scouting profile explains why Houston didn't hesitate. A 6-foot-5 frame generating a fastball that touches 98 with strike-throwing ability and a full five-pitch arsenal is exactly the kind of polished, near-ready arm teams covet in the supplemental first round. It's a long way from his high school days at Roosevelt, where he sat in the low 90s — the stuff has ticked up significantly since, and now it's translating into pro dollars.
Getting a first-rounder signed and off to the complex this fast matters for player development. Every extra week Radel spends throwing bullpens for the Astros instead of sitting in a holding pattern is a head start on a track that could see a college arm with his polish move quickly through the minors. For a South Dakota kid who was still starring in Little League World Series highlights less than a decade ago, it's the fastest of fast-tracks toward Minute Maid Park.