SS Bobby Stevens goes in the 16th to the Orioles, while RHP Trevor Feeney gets drafted in the 31st by the Detroit Tigers Friday in the MLB Draft.
HC Ed Mathey on Bobby's and Trevor's pro attributes:
"I am very happy for both Bobby and Trevor and it bodes well for Northern Illinois to have two players chosen in the draft this season," said Mathey. "It is a great honor for Bobby to be picked in the 16th round. He is a gifted athlete with the skills that scouts look for - speed, defense and the ability to hit for power - and he has done very well against some highly drafted pitchers. It was nice to see Trevor come back after being drafted last year, be our main guy on the mound, and improve his position in this year's draft. I think he has the chance to have a pretty good pro career."
On Bobby:
"Bobby has a high ceiling and a chance to do some things professionally," said Mathey. "At the same time, as a junior, he has some leverage in negotiations because if he comes back he can add to his number and be drafted even higher
"The Orioles called me in round 10 and said they were going to take me, then after not being picked in the next five rounds, I started to get a bit discouraged," said Stevens. "I got another call at the beginning of the 16th round and then four picks later I saw my name on the draft list. I was relieved and excited when it was all done."
That would be great if Bobby came back, but Feeney is a senior:"It's an honor to be picked up by the Detroit Tigers," said Feeney. "I am excited to get ready to start my pro career with the Tigers organization and continue on playing the game I have grown up loving to play."
...but don't count on Bobby Stevens in the Red & Black again:
“I had to wait for it but it was definitely unbelievable to see my name on the internet draft board,” Stevens, drafted No. 476 said. “Having my name called was the greatest feeling in the world. It was a dream come true.”
Stevens said he is 99 percent sure he will forgo his senior year and turn professional. He wants to improve his consistency and hopes the success he encountered on the field for the Huskies in 2008 will translate into a good start to his professional career.
If he indeed signs with the Orioles, Stevens said he has a personal goal to progress from Rookie Ball to Class A by the end of the summer to get a gauge on what he needs to work on over the winter to continue to improve. “I want to be more level-headed,” Stevens said. “I want to keep an even keel out there because I've learned in this game there are lots of up's and down's.”
Some interesting notes on some of Trevor Feeney's skillset:
“Every time Trevor went out it was on a Friday against the other team's best pitcher,” Mathey said. “As a junior, he was a five-, six- or seven-inning pitcher. This year he worked as an eight- or nine-inning pitcher. He showed he could hold onto a game and gave us a chance to win every time out.”
The transition to facing hitters with wood bats will also benefit Feeney, which Mathey said should allow the Channahon native to work the inner half of the plate with an increased frequency.
Although he doesn't project into a pitcher that can put up big strikeout numbers, with a heavy sinker, Feeney uses three pitches to keep hitters off balance.
“Professional hitters can get their barrels out to a ball on the outer half,” Mathey said. “Trevor has to continue to get stronger, which should help his velocity and stamina and allow him to be more assertive and pitch inside and jam some hitters.”
Feeney will be reporting to a Tigers Mini-Camp in Lakeland, FL next week and expects to be assigned sometime this summer to a minor league team.
In other Huskie baseball alumni news, LHP Reliever Matt German has been named to the Florida State League's All-Star team. That is a great honor to the only current Huskie in the afficliated minor leagues. German is currently playing for the Clearwater Threshers which is Advanced A ball. You can follow his minor league career either here or here.
Clearwater Threshers News
Mr. Irrelevant of the MLB Draft was actually an NIU recruit by the name of Kyle Stroup out of Fox Lake, IL.
Here's a kick-ass article about this guy by the Daily Herald. Our pitching staff is desperately going to need this guy next year.
No comments:
Post a Comment