By Mike London
mike.london@salisburypost.com

Vance Honeycutt was the last first-round pick to sign, but the Baltimore Orioles finally got his signature on the dotted line at about 11 a.m. on Thursday.

Baltimore fans had just started getting concerned that Honeycutt might head back to school, but first-round picks normally sign unless something amazing happens. There’s a huge stack of life-changing dollars on the table.

Honeycutt’s “slot value” was right at $3.8 million as the 22nd pick in the MLB draft, but he actually got a little more than that — $4 million and some change.

The Orioles were able to sign all of their picks, including a 17th-rounder who signed pretty close to the wire.

Honeycutt was represented by famed agent Scott Boras.

“Vance is not (just) a center fielder, he’s an athletic center fielder,” Boras declared to the Baltimore Banner. “He has explosion. He has grace. He has the ability to track a baseball. A lot of guys have speed. A lot of guys have athleticism. But he is someone who can track a baseball at high levels, get there and know where the ball is when he goes to catch it.”

That’s a solid description of what he does. As potentially lethal as Honeycutt is on offense, there are zero questions about defensive in center field. His speed is elite. His arm strength is very good, rated as well above average, even by MLB standards. When he make it to The Show, and that’s when, not if, if he stays healthy, he’ll be a Gold Glove waiting to happen.

Honeycutt was a marvelous athlete at Salisbury High, maturing physically through the COVID days. He won the Mark Norris Memorial Award as Rowan County Baseball Player of the Year as a senior. He was Rowan County Co-Offensive Player of the Year and a state championship MVP after quarterbacking the Hornets to a football title in the 2020 NCHSAA season that was delayed until early in 2021.

Honeycutt was drafted by the San Francisco Giants with a late-round pick after his senior season, but he turned down that offer and became one of the best players in the college game at UNC. He got a lot of early exposure with the South Charlotte Panthers showcase team. That’s where college scouts saw him. UNC was the dream school all along, so when the Tar Heels offered, that was a done deal.

Honeycutt played three All-ACC seasons for the Tar Heels and was ACC Defensive Player of the Year twice. He was even good at schoolwork. He was an Academic All-American.

He displayed prodigious production as a power and speed threat, breaking records, including UNC’s records for homers in a season and in a career. There aren’t many potential 30/30 guys in MLB, but he that sort of talent.

His senior year at UNC was his best. He batted .318 with loads of power (28 homers), steals, clutch hits, a through-the-roof OPS (1.124) and  a lofty on-base percentage.

There were scouts who were absolutely certain Honeycutt had the best physical tools of any player available in the draft.

His strikeouts have been much discussed. He struck out 27.5 percent of the time as a college junior, which led to red flags and doubters. Guys who strike out 27.5 percent of the time don’t normally get picked in the first round. So there was a wide range of opinions on him. As far as the national analysts, he was ranked as high as 13th for the draft and as low as 42nd.

The Orioles sound  thrilled that they got him at No. 22, because he’s a guy who doesn’t just have a chance to make the majors, he has a chance to be a standout.

Orioles director of player development Mike Blood told the Baltimore Banner, “Honeycutt can do so many things at a very high level. He is his own unique player and he can impact the game offensively, on the bases, and on the defensive side. So I really don’t want to put him into any box. He’s capable of really doing just about everything.”

Honeycutt said during a Zoom call with the Orioles that he’s happy to be a Bird and super-excited to get started.

It doesn’t sound like the Orioles will rush him, and they don’t need to rush him.

Honeycutt will report to Sarasota, Fla., to begin his work with the Orioles. Blood told the Baltimore Banner that he could finish out the season with the Class A Delmarva Shorebirds.

Delmarva is a team in Salisbury — Salisbury, Md.

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See Sunday’s Salisbury Post for more on Honeycutt.