Reds prospect Chase Burns signed his first profe sional contract Thursday and surpa sed an MLB draft record set by Pirates rookie pitching sensation Paul Skenes just last year. As part of his deal, Burns will receive a $9.25 million signing bonus which tops the $9.2 million one that Skenes got when he agreed to his deal with Pittsburgh in 2023, . The Reds announced the signing with a post on social media, featuring the No. 2 overall pick in this years draft smiling as he sat at a desk with a pen in his hand. Burns is coming out of Wake Forest, where he was the 2024 ACC Pitcher of the Year after putting up a 2.70 ERA and 0.92 WHIP. The 21- Jose Iglesias Jersey year-old struck out 191 batters last season in 100 innings while holding a 10-1 record. Explore More Wake Forest pitcher Chase Burns went No. 2 overall to the Reds in the 2024 MLB Draft. Getty Images Paul Skenes had the previous draft bonus record. USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con Hes the best college pitcher Ive seen, Wake Forest head coach Tom Walter told MLB.com after the draft. And thats no knock on Paul Skenes, who obviously shut us out for eight innings last year [in the College World Series] and was awesome, or Matt Harvey from North Carolina. Chase Burns is the best Ive seen. Reds scouting director that Burns will head to the Reds spring training complex in Arizona on Sunday and that they want to get him onto the field on Monday. The biggest thing first is figuring out where he is in a throwing progre sion, Katuska told the outlet. He still has some innings to throw. But its been a little bit since he was on the mound in a game situation. Were going to protect the long-term and what the projection is for him. Chase Burns is announced as the first-round draft pick for the Reds. Getty Images Burns was ranked sixth by MLB for their 2024 pre-draft rankings. Skenes, for his part, has been worth every penny, after dominating since his May call-up from Triple-A. Omar Narvaez Jersey
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