Schuster, a 13th-round pick, reportedly received a $450,000 signing bonus, passing up a scholarship offer to the University of Florida. That figure is above the recommended "slot" amount for a player drafted in Schuster's position.

He said he'll report to the club's rookie-league affiliate in Missoula, Mont.

"You know this means a lot because ultimately this is what any ball player is aiming for," Schuster told the Times via text message this morning. "Luckily I got the amount I wanted and I'm going to run with it."

A 6-foot-2 left-hander with 90-mph velocity and a knee-buckling slider, Schuster was far less diplomatic in an interview with the Diamondbacks' official Web site. He had been working out and attending summer classes at UF, but seemed disenchanted by the experience.

"You know what I figured that would probably hurry (the D-Backs) up a little bit, you know get them thinking a little," he told the site. "Then I got there and I don't like being treated like I'm stupid. I got there and they treated me like a dumb jock and I didn't appreciate it, I didn't like it."

JOEY KNIGHT