Cleveland Guardians officially sign No. 1 overall pick Travis Bazzana

Travis Bazzana joined the Cleveland Guardians organization on Sunday night, when they selected him with the first overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. However, the two sides still had to sort out the financial aspect of the selection.

Bazzana and the Guardians officially reached an agreement Friday afternoon, when Jim Callis of MLB.com reported that Cleveland and the second baseman agreed to an $8.95 million deal.

This signing is the fourth highest in MLB draft history. Pursuit burns (Cincinnati Reds), who was drafted right after Bazzana, signed for $9,250,000, which is the most in history. The other two are Paul Skenes (Pittsburgh Pirates) who signed for $9,200,000 in 2023 and Dylan crews (Washington Nationals) who signed for $9,000,000 last year.

What’s intriguing about this deal is that the Guardians signed Bazzana for significantly less than his slot value. MLB pegged the value of this year’s No. 1 pick at $10,570,600, meaning Cleveland saved nearly $1.5 million with the pick.

What can Cleveland do with the remaining money the club saves?

Well, they can spread that money among other draft picks and free up a spot for them.

The Guardians were already widely praised for selecting Bazzana with this pick. He has been touted by multiple media outlets as the best pure hitter in the draft and has a lot of potential to be a solid defensive second baseman as well. Now Cleveland gets their guy and a deal is in the works.

After this, Bazzana will officially sign his contract and the board will determine at which minor league level the 22-year-old player will be assigned to officially begin his professional baseball career.