NJCAA Baseball Players Anticipating MLB First-Year Player Draft June 9-11
June 8, 2009
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The 2009 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft will take place June 9-11, and like in year's past MLB teams will look to the NJCAA to fill the many needs of their clubs.
At the 2008 draft 161 NJCAA baseball players were selected, which marked the most players selected from the organization's ranks and an increase from 107 NJCAA players taken in the 2007 draft. The 2008 draft featured 221 two-year college players selected (NJCAA, California, Oregon, Washington), which also set a record.
The 2008 draft featured the first-round selection of Pitt Community College (N.C.) shortstop Lonnie Chisenhal who became just the 14th junior college player to be taken in the first round in the history of the draft. He was chosen 29th overall by the Cleveland Indians and is currently hitting .301 with 10 home runs and 43 RBI for the Kinston Indians (Class A+) in the Carolina League.
The increase of NJCAA and other two-year college players being selected in the draft is partly due to the end of the MLB 'draft-and-follow' rule. The MLB now operates under a signing deadline of August 17. Thus, teams have about 10 weeks to sign their draft selections. If a draft pick does not sign by the deadline they become a free agent and may sign with any club, up until one week before the next draft, or until the he enters, or returns to, a four-year or two-year college.
The experts at Baseball America have eight (four pitchers/four position players) NJCAA players listed on their just released Top 200 Prospect list. Jabari Blash (OF) and Mycal Jones (SS) of Miami-Dade College (Fla.) are raked 121st and 143rd, while Miles Hamblin (C) of Howard College (Texas) and Evan Chambers (OF) of Hillsborough Community College (Fla.) are ranked 168th and 181st to round out the position players. Jones was a First-Team NJCAA All-American selection while Hamblin was a Third-Team All-American honoree.
John Stilson (RHP), an Honorable-Mention NJCAA All-American from Texarkana College (Texas), is the top NJCAA pitcher on the list at No. 127. Jake Cowan (RHP) of San Jacinto College (Texas), Devin Fuller (RHP) of Chandler-Gilbert Community College (Ariz.) and Randy Henry (RHP) of South Mountain Community College (Ariz.) appear on the list at No. 133, 190, and 195.
The first round of the 2009 MLB First-Year Player Draft will be broadcast live on the new MLB Network. Full coverage of the draft can be found at the 2009 MLB Draft Central section of www.mlb.com.
NJCAA Baseball Players Selected in 2008 MLB Draft
