Fire officially sign top two picks, Daniel Johnson and Stefan Cleveland

Share

It didn't take long for the Chicago Fire to wrap up the signings of the club's top two 2017 draft picks.

The club announced the signings of first-round pick Daniel Johnson and second-rounder Stefan Cleveland on Monday. Both contracts are one-year guaranteed deals with club options through 2020.

Johnson was taken No. 11 overall and became the Fire's first pick after the No. 3 overall pick was traded away for general allocation money. Johnson is a wide midfielder who began his collegiate career at Maryland before finishing up with two years at Louisville.

Cleveland, a 6-foot-2 goalkeeper, also transferred to Louisville to finish his college ball. Cleveland spent four years at Dartmouth, starting three of them. The Ivy League does not grant redshirt years so Cleveland, who did not play his first year on campus in 2012, transferred to Louisville for his final year of eligibility. Cleveland then became a teammate of Johnson.

Cleveland is likely to be the team's No. 3 goalkeeper behind Jorge Bava and Matt Lampson. He would be a logical candidate to spent time on loan in 2017 to get playing time.

With these two officially signed, the Fire have 24 players under contract. Three more draft picks, second-rounder Guillermo Delgado, third-rounder Brondt Bronico and fourth-round pick Matej Dekovic remain unsigned.

Contact Us