The Los Angeles Dodgers selected Maddux Bruns out of UMS-Wright Preparatory School in Alabama with the No. 29 overall pick in the first round of the 2021 MLB Draft. The pick has a $2,424,600 million slot value and is the Dodgers’ only selection in the top 100 as they don’t pick again until the third round.
L.A. forfeited their second-round pick to the Cincinnati Reds in order to sign Trevor Bauer, who is currently under investigation for alleged sexual assault.
Bruns said during his interview on MLB Network that he watches and idolizes Clayton Kershaw. Bruns is verbally committed to attend Mississippi State.
The southpaw has a fastball that ranges in 91-93 mph, to go along with a slider that is in the mid-80s and curveball that is in the 70s.
In selecting Bruns, the Dodgers snapped a streak of drafting a collegiate player with their first-round pick in each of the past two classes. Last year the Dodgers drafted right-hander Bobby Miller out of Louisville.
Bruns is the first high-school left-handed pitcher taken by the Dodgers in the first round since Clayton Kershaw was drafted seventh overall in 2006.
Day 2 of the 2021 MLB Draft gets underway Monday, July 12, at 10 a.m. PT. Rounds 2-10 and Competitive Balance Round B will be covered on MLB.com. The final rounds, Nos. 11-20, will begin on Tuesday, July 13, at 9 a.m. PT with coverage on MLB.com.
Dodgers bonus pool for 2021 MLB Draft
The Dodgers’ bonus pool for the Draft (first 10 rounds only) is $4.646 million, which ranks 29th out of 30 teams. If a player drafted in the top 10 rounds doesn’t sign, that pick’s value gets subtracted from the team’s overall pool.
Clubs that exceed their bonus pool by 0-5% must pay a 75% penalty tax on the overage. At higher thresholds, teams lose a future first-round draft pick and incur a 75% tax for surpassing their pool by between 5-10%.
A first- and a second-rounder along with a 100% tax is levied if exceeding bonus pool space by 10-15%; and two first-rounders plus a 100% tax is imposed for going more than 15% over their pool.
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