FAYETTEVILLE — Lefthanders kept falling off the board as another big southpaw waited for his call Thursday.

Arkansas junior Nick Schmidt remained available until the San Diego Padres selected him 23 rd overall in the first round of the major league baseball first-year player draft.

“I was dropping, but no matter what I got my named called, and that’s what I want,” Schmidt said.

Schmidt is the fourth Razorback to have been selected in the first round and second Arkansas player picked that high by the Padres, who grabbed outfielder Kevin McReynolds sixth overall in 1981.

ADVERTISEMENT

Arkansas’ other junior starting pitchers, Duke Welker and Jess Todd, were drafted in the second round. Welker was taken by Pittsburgh with the 68 th pick, and St. Louis chose Todd with the 82 nd pick.

San Diego was one of the teams that showed interest in Schmidt, who finished his Razorbacks’ career with a 28-8 record and set the school’s all-time strikeout mark of 345.

He didn’t expect to be around for the Padres. Three teams picking earlier in the round — Colorado at No. 8, Arizona at No. 9 and Seattle at 11 th — appeared to have the most interest, but none opted for Schmidt until he fell to the Padres.

Left-handed pitchers are among the most elusive prospects to develop, and few drafts have contained this much top-of-theboard talent from the left side of the mound. Schmidt was the sixth of seven left-handers picked in the first round. Only three left-handers were picked in round one in 2006 and only four in 2005.

“I knew that was going to happen. There were a lot of quality left-handers in this draft,” Schmidt said. “I knew the [Padres ] were one of the teams down a couple of picks that were maybe going to pick me.”

Two of Schmidt’s left-handed pitching friends from last summer’s U. S. National Team, Vanderbilt’s David Price (first ) and Missouri State’s Ross Detwiler (sixth ), went before him. Schmidt also was bypassed for two more college left-handers, Clemson’s Daniel Moskos (fourth ) and Rice’s Joe Savery (19 ).

“My nerves were going crazy. It was an emotional time for me. In between picks I would just walk around and pace, and it was just dragging on,” Schmidt said. “I thought we were going with [Nos. ] 9, 11 or 13. Things don’t work out that way, and that’s life, but it was awesome to get picked by the Padres.”

Despite dropping more than some expected, Schmidt can expect a hefty signing bonus. The last two players selected at No. 23 overall, Oregon State outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury (Boston ) and high school pitcher Phillip Hughes (New York Yankees ), each received $ 1. 4 million, which has become a common number in that slot. Schmidt, whose adviser is Curtis Dishman of Houston-based Hendricks Brothers Sports Management, said he’d like to agree to terms quickly.

Many scouts project Schmidt, 6-5, 220 pounds, to eventually be a No. 3 starter at the big-league level.

“A big, strong guy. A lot of people compare him physically to [New York Yankees left-hander ] Andy Pettite,” ESPN baseball analyst Steve Phillips said. “He doesn’t have overpowering stuff, though, with a fastball about 87-89 mph and no major swing-and-miss pitch, but he’s a guy that keeps coming at you. He commands his pitches, works the count and changes speeds. He’s a guy that can take you deep in the game.”

ESPN’s Peter Gammons called Schmidt “a big-game guy” who was the Razorbacks’ No. 1 starter through most of his career. He likely won’t have that role on the professional level if he reaches the major leagues.

“We feel fortunate to get Nick in the first round,” said Grady Fuson, San Diego’s vice president of scouting and player development. “We collectively saw quite a few of his starts down the stretch and we think he will be a great addition to the left-handers already in our system. He’s a strong, durable pitcher with three or four different pitches and he is already a proven winner.”

The Padres have one of baseball’s best staff aces in Jake Peavy, and Schmidt could learn a lot from veterans like future Hall of Famer Greg Maddux if they cross paths at San Diego’s spring training headquarters in Peoria, Ariz., next year.

“I can’t even imagine talking to a Jake Peavy or a guy like Greg Maddux,” Schmidt said. “Those are guys you grow up watching them play. To get the chance to talk to them about pitching would be just amazing.”

Getting Welker and Todd in the second-round could be bargains for Pittsburgh and St. Louis if they continue to develop after making quick impacts in Division I as junior-college transfers. They have a little more of a wow factor in their tools than the steady Schmidt, who should have a quicker timetable to the majors.

Welker, 6-7, potentially has the best stuff of the three. He thought he’d go somewhere between pick 40 and 80.

“It’s a big breathe in, breathe out relief. It’s over, and right now I know I’m going to be a Pirate,” said Welker, who is headed for a smallmarket organization attempting to build a winner through its farm system and developing young talent. “You know that they haven’t had success lately, and they need some newcomers to step in and hopefully make it a successful team.”

The defending world-champion Cardinals went with Todd, a hard-throwing right-hander who has a chance to move up quickly, probably as a reliever.

“If they want me to relieve or start, I’ll do whatever I can,” he said. “I want to get going as quickly as possible. Second-round money is pretty good. I want to sign and go into pro ball.”