BB: USAC: USA South Athletic Conference

[narch]

I think the USA south has a shot w/ Chris Pecora getting drafted...Brett Thomas has a outside chance. 

i'd take a late round flier on thomas and see if i could make him an outfielder...that speed/power combo is nice, and the kid hits in the clutch

pecora is ripping the cover off the ball with the wood bat in the cpl...he's hitting .484 with 14 rbi and 4 sb's in the first 7 games for fayetteville - i know the cpl isn't the cape cod, but there are some pretty legit players in that league, and it's not a league known to be hitter friendly

[NCWC]

narch, didnt verlander play in the cpl?

CATFISH:
Im not to sure about how the draft works, does pecora have the chance to be drafted higher next year by another team? or do the mariners have the rights to him next year also?

What do you think of matt smiths chances next year?  kinda like a randy winn type player,  could he be converted to an INF in the minors?

Also, would Blake Rice and Ben Pearson be called by an independant team or would they have to go to a try out?

[Jim Dixon]

CATFISH:
Im not to sure about how the draft works, does pecora have the chance to be drafted higher next year by another team? or do the mariners have the rights to him next year also?

You have until the player goes back to school or the day before the next draft.

If Pecora returns next fall he will certainly be eligilble for the draft by any team at any round.  You have your greatest levearge in a bonus negotiation as a Jr since you have the option of returning to school. 

[Pat Coleman]

Actually I think the new MLB draft rules cut off the signing date at Aug. 15 or somewhere in there.

[Jim Dixon]

I also remember that a contact needs to be offered in a specific amount of time.....but then again Pat is right.  it is best to check the rules since the rules change all the time.


From: http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/draftday/rules.jsp


Official Rules

The Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft is held every year in June by conference call among the 30 Major League Clubs. The Clubs take turns selecting players in reverse order of their won-lost records at the close of the previous regular season. The order of selection is without regard to League.

The Major League Rules govern which players are eligible for selection in the Draft. These Rules are detailed, but the basic eligibility criteria can be described as follows: Generally, a player is eligible for selection if the player is a resident of the United States or Canada and the player has never before signed a Major League or Minor League contract. Residents of Puerto Rico and other territories of the United States are eligible for the Draft. Also considered residents are players who enroll in a high school or college in the United States, regardless of where they are from originally.

Certain groups of players are ineligible for selection, generally because they are still in school. The basic categories of players eligible to be drafted are:

    * High school players, if they have graduated from high school and have not yet attended college or junior college;
    * College players, from four-year colleges who have either completed their junior or senior years or are at least 21 years old; and
    * Junior college players, regardless of how many years of school they have completed

A Club generally retains the rights to sign a selected player until 11:59 PM (EDT) August 15, or until the player enters, or returns to, a four-year college on a full-time basis. A player who is drafted and does not sign with the Club that selected him may be drafted again at a future year's Draft, so long as the player is eligible for that year's Draft. A Club may not select a player again in a subsequent year, unless the player has consented to the re-selection.

A player who is eligible to be selected and is passed over by every Club becomes a free agent and may sign with any Club until the player enters, or returns to, a four-year college full-time or enters, or returns to, a junior college.

This description is a general one and the Major League Rules themselves, not this summary, govern eligibility issues. Players and coaches with questions about particular players are referred to the Baseball Operations Department at the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball.

[Catfishncwc]

narch, didnt verlander play in the cpl?

CATFISH:
Im not to sure about how the draft works, does pecora have the chance to be drafted higher next year by another team? or do the mariners have the rights to him next year also?

What do you think of matt smiths chances next year?  kinda like a randy winn type player,  could he be converted to an INF in the minors?

Also, would Blake Rice and Ben Pearson be called by an independant team or would they have to go to a try out?

Well it looks like the 1st question was asked nicely.  Though I am surprised he dropped so low.  We had him slotted around the 20th round and he fell to 33rd to Seattle. 
I think matt smith has a outside chance of being picked up by a team next year.  Smith grades out Average.  If he were a bit faster or a bit stronger he would be a prospect. 

Blake and Ben would have to tryout for a Indy team.  Neither lights up the radar gun and they would have to show thier stuff to a team.  But I think either one would have sucess with a indy team if given a chance.  both just happen to fall under the stigma of being soft tossing righties and those a dime a dozen. 

[NCWC]

Catfish, was just up in NC this past week, hotter there than in florida.  A couple more questions for you.  I know Fox at unc was at wesleyan but what about the pitching coach for unc, Forbes, I think his name is?

Did you ever get to see John Tejada pitch for NCWC? We both gave it hell in 04 but got shutdown a quarter into the season.

[Catfishncwc]

Catfish, was just up in NC this past week, hotter there than in florida.  A couple more questions for you.  I know Fox at unc was at wesleyan but what about the pitching coach for unc, Forbes, I think his name is?

Did you ever get to see John Tejada pitch for NCWC? We both gave it hell in 04 but got shutdown a quarter into the season.

Scott Forbes only coached one year at Wesleyan in 98.  He was a Student assitant that year and followed Coach Fox to UNC to be a graduate assitant and is now a full time coach. 
I only show Tejeda pitch his frist year at NCWC when I still lived in Rocky Mount.  But that was before I became a scout. 

[narch]

pecora is still lighting it up for the swampdogs...rumor has it that seattle asked him to continue in the cpl before they determined what kind of contract they would offer...is this common catfish?  could pecora get, say 20th round money if they, like you guys, had him slotted that high and they like what they see in the cpl?  is there a ton of difference between 20th and 33rd round money?

it seems to me that the mariners would want to get him into their system, seeing minor league pitching asap...

[Catfishncwc]

pecora is still lighting it up for the swampdogs...rumor has it that seattle asked him to continue in the cpl before they determined what kind of contract they would offer...is this common catfish?  could pecora get, say 20th round money if they, like you guys, had him slotted that high and they like what they see in the cpl?  is there a ton of difference between 20th and 33rd round money?

it seems to me that the mariners would want to get him into their system, seeing minor league pitching asap...

We were going to do the same thing.  Follow him through the summer.  It is very common for the higher college draft picks for a team to follow them through the summer and then determine if they are going to sign them.  Now that you have no more Draft and Follow JUCO players due to the August 15th signing deadline this practice will happen a lot more for college players. 
But I can only say that Pecora has helped himself with way he is hitting the ball in the CPL.
Bonus wise once you start getting out the top 20 rounds must bonuses will be between $10000-$20000 for the most part.  Those who get money probably dropped that far due to signability questions before the draft. 

[Falcon2720]

Pat Burgess Signed a Pro Baseball Deal

Greensboro College's Pat Burgess Inks Pro Baseball Deal

Former Greensboro College baseball player Pat Burgess (Sunnyvale, Calif../Freemont) has agreed to terms to play for the Herkimer Trailbusters of the independent New York State League.

Burgess, who gradauted in May, batted .333 with 30 RBI for The Pride in 2007. For the second straight year, Burgess was picked to the USA South first team. He also stole 12-13 bases for GC, which finished the year 20-20.

In 2006, he was a first team All-Region pick for The Pride. He hit .327 with 14 home runs and 58 RBI and was also selected to the USAS Tournament Team. The '06 team went 27-16 and tied a program record for wins. Burgess played outfield and third base for GC.

"This is exciting news for Pat and for our program," said Pride Head Coach Ken Carlyle. "Not surprisingly, he's being used as a catcher. Pat has many of the skills the major leagues are looking for and he works extremely hard."

Burgess becomes the second Greensboro College baseball player to play in the professional ranks. Pitcher A.J. Siriani '97 played for Adirondack in the Northern League.

The four-team New York State League (http://www.nystateleague.com) is a professional league for first-year players who have exhausted their college eligibility. The season begins on July 3 and culminates with the league's championship game on August 31.

[narch]

that's good news for burgess - it will be interesting how he adjusts behind the plate...catcher is a tough position to play on a daily basis if you've never done it extensively - blocking balls, reading hitters, calling a game - those things aren't exactly intuitive for most non-catchers

he certainly has the kind of bat you'd like to see from that position, but i've always felt that a good catcher should save you more runs than he produces (probably because i was a light-hitting defensive minded catcher myself, and therefore somewhat biased )

[CNU85]

that's good news for burgess - it will be interesting how he adjusts behind the plate...catcher is a tough position to play on a daily basis if you've never done it extensively - blocking balls, reading hitters, calling a game - those things aren't exactly intuitive for most non-catchers

he certainly has the kind of bat you'd like to see from that position, but i've always felt that a good catcher should save you more runs than he produces (probably because i was a light-hitting defensive minded catcher myself, and therefore somewhat biased )

that is indeed good news for Burgess....Narch help me with the article below....how many bases did he steal? 12 or 13? or somewhere in between?

[narch]

that is indeed good news for Burgess....Narch help me with the article below....how many bases did he steal? 12 or 13? or somewhere in between?

'85...you've let me down...that's 12 OF 13 (or 12 in 13 attempts)

[Falcon2720]

Congrats to Chris Pecora of NCWC and Kenny Moreland of CNU for being selected to the Coastal Plain League All-Star Game.  This is an outstanding honor.  Pecora who plays for the Fayetteville Swampdogs will represent the American team.  Moreland who plays for the Peninsula Pilots will represent the National team. 

Here is what the Swampdogs website has said about Pecora.

Chris Pecora, the 33rd round pick of the Seattle Mariners, has been one of the top players in the entire league.  He is currently second in the league in batting average (.366), second in the league in RBIs (32) and third in the league in stolen bases (17).  Pecora has also done a remarkable job right field, recording nine assists, which is certainly a league best.  The NC Wesleyan star has been extremely durable as well, starting in 32 of Fayetteville's 34 games.

Here is what the Pilots website has said about Moreland

Moreland, who is Peninsula's career record holder with 36 appearances and 17 saves, is third in the league with 12 games finished and seven saves.  The junior is 1-0 with a 1.35 ERA in 14 appearances on the mound.  In addition, he has recorded 27 strikeouts in 20.0 innings of work, while holding opponents to a team-leading .157 batting average.