Zach Lee still on the clock, but Dodgers do spend $600,000 to sign Joc Pederson

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The Dodgers are getting all suspenseful with their potential signing of No.1 draft pick Zach Lee, but they have made one deadline deal.

They signed 11th-round pick Joc Pederson for $600,000 on Monday, easily the most they’ve spent on any current draft pick.

The deadline to sign Lee is tonight at 9 PDT.

Lee has been at Louisiana State’s football camp for weeks, and the quarterback was there for the Tigers’ morning workout. Times Dodgers beat writer Dylan Hernandez, however, reported that Lee skipped the afternoon session to be with family and meet with Dodgers representatives.

Lee’s signing would be a major coup for the Dodgers, most teams backing off the right-hander because they were convinced he wanted to play quarterback at Louisiana State.

But teams also reportedly backed off Pederson because of his asking price and the Dodgers were able to land him on the last day.

The outfielder was committed to play baseball at USC and told Hernandez he was getting ready to drive from Palo Alto to the Trojans’ campus when the Dodgers came up with a late, attractive offer.

The $600,000 signing bonus was four times the slotted amount for selections after the fifth round.

Hernandez said Pederson is scheduled to report to the Dodgers’ training facility in Arizona on Wednesday. His father, Stu, briefly played for the Dodgers in 1980.

-- Steve Dilbeck