HOUSTON — The Houston Astros say they have signed right-handed pitcher Mark Appel of Stanford, the No. 1 overall pick in the draft earlier this month.
Terms were not disclosed Wednesday ahead of a news conference with Appel.
The 21-year-old Appel was 10-4 with four complete games and a 2.12 ERA as a senior this season. He had 130 strikeouts in 106 1/3 innings pitched and allowed opponents a .203 batting average.
Appel is an Astros fan who grew up in west Houston before moving to California at the age of 12.
“I talked to him and told him ‘Welcome home,'” Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow said on draft night. “It’s a kid’s dream to go first in the country, first in the draft and to be taken by your hometown team. It just doesn’t get any better than that. It’s also really a great opportunity for us.”
The Astros took Appel No. 1 overall a year after passing on the hometown kid and instead choosing 17-year-old shortstop Carlos Correa from Puerto Rico.
Appel was selected instead last year by Pittsburgh as he slid down to No. 8, but turned down a $3.8 million offer and returned to Stanford for his senior season.
Story courtesy of espn.go.com
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.