The Orioles failed to come to terms with 2015 second-round pick Jonathan Hughes before Friday’s signing deadline.
The right-handed pitcher was the 68th overall pick out of Flowery Branch (Ga.) High, but he will instead attend college at Georgia Tech. As compensation for not coming to terms with Hughes, Baltimore will receive the 69th selection in the 2016 amateur draft.
At 6-foot-2 and 184 pounds, Hughes possesses a fastball that sits in the low 90s along with a slider, curve, and changeup, a repertoire that made him an attractive prospect to the Orioles. The slot in which he was drafted carried a bonus-pool value of $907,000.
Hughes is the highest Orioles draft pick to go unsigned since pitcher Wade Townsend in 2004, but the organization was able to sign 35 of their 41 selections in the 2015 draft.
In other news, the Orioles have signed veteran left-handers Dana Eveland and Andy Oliver to minor-league deals. The 31-year-old Eveland spent part of the 2012 season in Baltimore, pitching to a 4.73 ERA in 32 1/3 innings.
