Tulane Baseball Pitcher Inks Deal with Milwaukee Brewers Following MLB Draft
Four Tulane Baseball players were selected in this year's 2024 MLB draft and the first of them has officially signed with their respective teams.
Right-handed pitcher Chandler Welch, selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the sixth round, signed his deal with the team according to a social media post from Tulane Baseball.
It is unclear how much he signed for, however, the slot value allocated to his 185th pick is $328,700.
A reminder that the MLB draft works quite differently from other major American sports. After the MLB draft it is up to the teams to arrive at a deal with the individual players. Each team has a set pool of money and each slot has an advised "value" that is used as a guide.
Teams can go above that slot value to sign a player that may be otherwise tough to convince to join the organization rather than return to their college for another season.
However, the money used to pay over slot value will then have to be saved elsewhere down the line when trying to sign any of the other 20 draft picks.
Welch was the only player of the four Tulane draftees that head coach Jay Uhlman thought had a chance to return to Tulane for another, however slim. That is not the case as he will now be joining the Brewers' organization where he will begin his pro development in the minor leagues with the hopes of one day reaching the Majors.
Welch compiled a team-high seven wins and posted a 4.65 ERA over 89.0 innings pitched with 88 strikeouts. Welch's selection was the highest a pitcher has been drafted out of Tulane since Shooter Hunt went with the 31st pick in 2008.
His father, David, also pitched for Tulane and was drafted by the Cleveland Guardians in the 1992 MLB draft, making this a legacy ordeal for the Welch family.
KADE KISTNER