CHICAGO -- The Boston Red Sox have signed No. 1 pick Deven Marrero, a shortstop out of Arizona, to a $2.05 million signing bonus, according to a report by Baseball America.
The assigned value for Marrero's pick, 24th overall, was $1.75 million. Callis reports that Marrero's signing leaves Boston a total of $331,700 over the assigned values for its signees in the first 10 rounds, though the club probably saved a third of that amount on 10th-rounder J.T. Watkins, whose bonus is not yet known.
The Red Sox have yet to sign left-hander Brian Johnson (first round) or righty Austin Maddox (third), who are pitching for Florida in the College World Series.
Marrero's coach in the Cape League, Mike Roberts, raved about Marrero after he was drafted 24th overall by the Sox.
"He's the best amateur baseball player on the defensive side I've ever seen in 35 years of coaching," Roberts said. "He's Omar Vizquel at 20, 21, except he'll be a better hitter and steal more bases. I've seen him do things defensively I've never seen another infielder do."