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Jul 27, 2026
at
12:44 pm ET
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1 min read
Schmidt informed the Guardians on Sunday that he won’t sign a contract with the organization prior to Monday’s deadline and will instead play college baseball in 2027, Jacob Rudner of Baseball America reports.
Cleveland selected Schmidt, an 18-year-old prep lefty from California, with the No. 59 overall pick in the 2026 First-Year Player Draft earlier this month. After he was unable to come to terms on a deal with the Guardians, Schmidt plans to either honor his commitment to LSU or enroll at a junior-college program, with the latter option making him eligible to re-enter the draft in 2027. Signing with LSU, on the other hand, would leave the 6-foot-4, 215-pound hurler ineligible for the draft until 2029, barring a change in MLB rules under the next collective bargaining agreement.