Pirates Sign Second Round Pick Chris Rembert
Auburn second baseman Chris Rembert received an over-slot bonus as the 51st overall pick.
After the 2026 MLB Draft, Pittsburgh Pirates’ General Manager Ben Cherington said that all three of the team’s top three picks were in the top 15 of their draft board.
On Wednesday, the team announced the signing of one of those players, 51st overall pick Chris Rembert. The over-slot signing bonus backed up the idea that the Pirates considered him one of the best in the draft.
According to Jim Callis, Rembert signed for $2.4 million, which was nearly half a million more than the slot price for his pick.
So what did the Pirates like so much about Rembert?
The biggest standout was his hit tool. The highest grades had him as a plus hitter with fringe-average power potential. He drew comps to former big league second baseman Howie Kendrick. Rembert also has average to above-average speed, along with average fielding grades at second base.
MLB Pipeline said that Rembert has some of the best bat speed in college baseball, along with an advanced approach. He had a strikeout rate below 15% in both years at college, while hitting from day one. His .343/.399/.459 line in 233 at-bats with Auburn this year saw a power drop over his freshman numbers. He was also dealing with an ankle injury during the spring that could have had an impact on his game.
Rembert was a draft eligible sophomore, which gave him extra leverage. He was ranked 47th overall by Pipeline, 55th by Baseball America, 67th by ESPN, and was the 8th best college hitter outside of the top 75 overall players in the FanGraphs rankings.
The Pirates recently saved money in rounds 5-10, but that amount was only around $267,000. That doesn’t cover the over-slot bonus they gave Rembert. They could still go under-slot with their remaining picks in rounds 1-4 to make up for the difference. They also have an extra $700,000 to spend on top of their bonus pool, before they’d lose a draft pick as a penalty.
With this latest signing, the Pirates now have reached a deal with 11 of their 21 players. The Draft Pick Signing Tracker is updated at Pirates Prospects with all of the moves to date.
Until the next draft signing…
-Tim Williams