Schmidt Signs Undrafted Free Agent Contract with Royals
6/18/2020 9:25:00 AM | Baseball
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- University of Michigan baseball redshirt senior Matthew Schmidt signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Kansas City Royals on Thursday (June 18), becoming the latest Wolverine to join the ProBlue ranks.
Schmidt joins junior catcher Joe Donovan, who signed with the Cleveland Indians earlier this week, as 2020 undrafted free agents. Teammates Jeff Criswell (second round, Oakalnd Athletics), Jordan Nwogu (third round, Chicago Cubs), Jesse Franklin (third round, Atlanta Braves) and Jack Blomgren (fifth round, Colorado Rockies) were drafted on June 11 during the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.
The Parker, Colorado, native moved into a starting role in 2020 after serving as a reserve during his first two years in the maize and blue. Schmidt had the biggest home run of the COVID-19 shortened 2020 season, launching a go-ahead two-run home run over No. 2-ranked Vanderbilt in the Feb. 14 season opener. Schmidt saved his best season for last, slugging .364 with an on-base percentage of .333 while scoring and driving in four runs in his final campaign.
