MLB Draft: St. Louis Cardinals sign No. 1 pick Nick Plummer

The St. Louis Cardinals changed their approach a bit on the first day of the 2015 MLB Draft, taking three high-school prospects and the risk-reward that comes with them. One of those players was outfielder Nick Plummer who, as reported by Keith Law, spent the season playing in a league where the count starts at 1-1. The Cardinals took Plummer with their first-round pick at No. 23 overall. You can read resident VEB draft obsessive RB's analysis of the Plummer pick here and his morning-after thoughts on the Cardinals' Day One picks here.

Let me confess that I am a bit of worrier when it comes the Cards picking high-schoolers (and college underclassmen) in the draft. There's no guarantee that such players will sign. I hadn't read much about whether Plummer was a signability question mark entering the draft, though my post-selection research revealed that he had previously committed to Kentucky.

After the Cardinals selected Plummer with the 23rd pick, he tweeted the following:

All I can say is God works in mysterious ways, had no clue the @Cardinals were interested and I couldn't be happier! Thank you & #GoCards ⚪️

— Nick Plummer (@nplum11) June 9, 2015

The Cardinals did not reach out to Plummer to express their interest before signing him!? Plummer couldn't be happier!!! Red dot? White dot?? Throw in the allusion to fate taking a hand (i.e., God working in mysterious ways) and I was feeling pretty good about the Cards' chances of signing Plummer.

With the No. 23 pick having a $2,124,400 slot value, I probably should not have worried at all. On Wednesday night, Tony Paul of the Detroit News reported that the Cardinals and Plummer have come to an agreement for slot value:

After passing his physical, he will sign his first professional contract.

He will sign for $2.124 million, the recommended slot value for the 23rd overall pick, he told The News.

But that's not all. Paul also revealed the plan for the initial steps in Plummer's pro career with St. Louis:

After passing his physical and signing for his bonus, Plummer will work out at the team's spring-training facility in Jupiter, Florida, then will join the team's rookie-league team in Johnson City, Tennessee, when that team starts play the fourth week of June.

The Cardinals wasted little time locking in their No. 1 pick, agreeing to a contract with Plummer well in advance of the July 17, 2015, deadline for clubs to sign 2015 draftees.