Padres sign second-rounder James Wood for $2.6 million

The Padres viewed second-rounder James Wood as one of the biggest upside picks in the draft.

They are paying like him one, too.

The 18-year-old outfielder on Tuesday agreed to a $2.6 million deal, their largest signing bonus from the 2021 draft class

Selected 62^nd overall, Wood was ranked No. 44 in the draft class by MLB.com.

The 6-foot-7, left-handed-hitting outfielder with plus-plus power potential was committed to Mississippi State.

“He was a guy we probably didn’t feel like we’d even get even with our first pick, honestly,” Padres General Manager A.J. Preller said last week at the conclusion of the draft. “You talk about outlier ability and talent … it’s a really good swing for a bigger person. It’s not a long swing. It’s a short stroke. He performed last summer. …

“Our job is to help him realize his ability, but he’s got a chance to be a power, impact bat that plays a corner outfield spot and one of those guys you get excited about what the possibilities are for down the road.”

With sixth-round pitcher Ryan Bergert agreeing to a $500,000 bonus — nearly double the slot value for the 190^th overall pick — seventh-round pitcher Ryan Och signing for just under slot ($150,000) and first-rounder Jackson Merrill’s $1.8 million deal highlighting Monday’s agreements, the Padres have creeped past their bonus pool to a total of just over $7 million spent thus far on the 2021 draft picks.

The Padres were allotted a $6.812 bonus pool.

They will be taxed up to 5 percent on the overage.

Teams that blow past that 5 percent threshold stand to lose draft picks, which has not yet occurred for any team under the hard-slotting system.

To date, the Padres have deals with their first 10 picks of the 2021 draft and 10 of the 11 players selected inside the first 10 rounds of the draft.

The lone outstanding draftee from the first 10 rounds is catcher Colton Bender, a college senior selected in the 10^th round ($142,500 slot value).

Players selected outside the top-10 rounds can sign for up to $125,000 without that money counting against the bonus pool, all but ruling out deals for the two long-shot arms signed late in the draft: 18^th-rounder Gage Jump and 20^th-rounder Chase Burns.

Both ranked inside MLB.com’s top-50 draft prospects, Jump and Burns have strong college commitments to UCLA and Tennessee, respectively, which is why they were available late in Day 3 of the draft.

Teams have until Aug. 1 to sign their 2021 draft selections.