Top draft picks have issues
WASHINGTON — This probably wasn’t how the Dodgers envisioned their draft class.
Their f irst- round pick will have to undergo reconstructive elbow surgery, according to multiple reports. Their next- highest selection didn’t sign and is returning to college for his senior year.
General Manager Farhan Zaidi declined to address the health status of Walker Buehler, the righthander from Vanderbilt they selected with the 24th pick of the first round.
Buehler agreed Friday to a bonus worth $ 1.78 million, which was about $ 300,000 less than the recommended bonus for his draft position. The Dodgers had until 2 p. m. PDT that day to reach deals with him or any of their other unsigned draft picks.
The probable reason for Buehler’s modest bonus later emerged, as Jon Heyman of CBS Sports and Keith Law of ESPN reported Buehler’s elbow will require Tommy John surgery.
That kind of operation would presumably sideline Buehler for 12 to 16 months.
As for Kyle Funkhouser, the only way he’ll pitch for the Dodgers in the near future is if he is drafted by them again next year. He will be returning to the University of Louisville.
Once projected as a high first- round pick, Funkhouser’s stock dropped late in the season and the righthander’s velocity dipped. The Dodgers drafted him 35th overall with the com- pensatory pick they received when Hanley Ramirez signed with the Boston Red Sox.
The Dodgers are believed to have offered Funkhouser about $ 2 million, which was above slot value for a player drafted in his position. That wasn’t enough.
With the league restricting how much teams can spend in the draft, the Dodgers could have risked forfeiting future draft picks by offering Funkhouser a larger bonus.
On the mend
Carl Crawford will remain on a minor- league rehabilitation assignment with triple- A Oklahoma City through the weekend. After that, Manager Don Mattingly said, the Dodgers will decide whether to activate him from the disabled list.
Crawford has been sidelined since April 28 with a torn side muscle. Because he is on the 60- day disabled list and doesn’t count against the 40- man roster, the Dodgers would have to remove a player from their roster if they activate him.
Short hops
Longtime minor league coach John Shoemaker was named the organization’s captain of player development. Shoemaker is currently the manager of rookie- advanced Ogden. . . . Among the other draft picks who signed Friday was sixth rounder Edwin Rios, a third baseman from Florida International University.