With money and internal debates still raging Sunday evening, the MLB Draft moved closer to its 7 p.m. start and to expectations the Pirates will be taking California prep shortstop Marcelo Mayer with the draft’s first pick (ESPN, MLB Network).
But the expectations were just that — an anticipation that Pittsburgh and Mayer, in tandem with agent John Boggs, would arrive at agreement on money that still threatened to undo the Pirates’ offer and hand Mayer to another club, which was poised to be the Tigers.
Mayer, 18, is a gifted, left-handed hitting shortstop from Eastlake High in Chula Vista, California.