WholeHogSports
THE RECRUITING GUY : UA baseball coaches await word on drafted players
Posted on Friday, June 27, 2008
URL: http://www.wholehogsports.com/adg/229839/
Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn and his baseball staff are crossing their fingers and hoping their highly rated recruiting class suffers only minimal losses to the major leagues.
The Hogs had 12 signees taken June 5-6 in the Major League Draft. So far two have signed with teams, and the Razorbacks expect a third to sign, while a few others are on the bubble.
Highly touted right-handed pitcher Tyler Sample, 6-7, 220 pounds, of Elizabeth (Colo. ) Mullen was drafted in the third round and signed with the Kansas City Royals, and College of Southern Nevada catcher Braeden Schlehuber, 6-2, 190, signed with the Atlanta Braves after being taken in the fourth round. The Hogs also expect to lose pitcher Colby Shreve, 6-5, 210, to the Philadelphia Phillies, who took the College of Southern Nevada right-hander in the sixth round. Shreve was considered one of the top junior-college pitchers in the nation.
The Razorbacks are hoping right-handed pitcher Bobby Bundy, who was drafted in the eighth round by Baltimore, will enroll at Arkansas in the fall. Bundy, 6-3, 210, of Sperry, Okla., throws in the mid-90 s and is ranked No. 30 among Baseball America’s Top 100 college prospects. He reportedly will be offered more money than what is usually paid for an eighth-round pick, and the Hogs don’t expect to know his status until July or August.
Third baseman / pitcher Zack Cox, 6-0, 205, of Louisville (Ky. ) Pleasure Ridge Park is another wait-and-see prospect. Cox, who is rated as the No. 24 prospect by Baseball America, was taken in the 20 th round by the Los Angeles Dodgers, and reportedly he dropped in the draft because of his desire to attend college.
Illinois left-hander Austin Wright, 6-4, 215, is generally regarded as one of the top pitching prospects in the country. He starred at Conant High School in Schaumburg, Ill., and is rated as the No. 57 prospect in the nation by Baseball America. Wright throws in the high 80 s and low 90 s and was taken by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 23 rd round.
The Razorbacks expect outfielder Seth Gardner, 6-4, 190, of Dallas Highland Park to be on campus in the fall. Gardner batted. 550 with 9 home runs and 44 RBI for Highland Park last season and is an outstanding athlete who runs a 6. 5 60-yard dash. He was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 13 th round.
Outfielder Jerrod McKinney, 6-0, 205, of Hughes Springs, Texas, also is expected to be on campus after hitting. 449 with 10 home runs and 12 doubles last season. McKinney, MVP of District 17-2 A, runs the 60-yard dash in 6. 4 seconds and is rated as the No. 70 prospect in the country by Baseball America. He was expected to be taken anywhere from the fifth to 10 th round, but his asking price scared off teams and he went undrafted.
Other Razorbacks who were drafted but are expected to make it to campus include pitcher T. J. Forrest, 6-6, 175, of Bossier (La. ) Parish Community College, catcher James McCann, 6-2, 185, of Santa Barbara, (Calif. ) Dos Pueblos, pitcher Trevor Cousineau, 6-5, 220, of Davison, Mich., pitcher Bryan Gingham, 6-6, 205, of Navarro (Texas ) College and pitcher Jeremy Heatley, 6-2, 210, of North Lake College in Irving, Texas.
Last year, Baseball America rated the Hogs’ recruiting class No. 10 in the nation, and Arkansas recruiting coordinator Todd Butler believes that if Bundy, Cox and others enroll in the fall, it could be one of the school’s best classes ever.
“This might be a top-three or top-five class,” Butler said. “This class is really good. It’s one of the better classes I’ve been a part of since I’ve been coaching for 18-19 years.”
The Razorbacks signed two in-state high school athletes, De Queen outfielder Kyle Atkins and infielder Bo Bigham of Texarkana. Atkins, 5-11, 180, runs a 6. 4 60 and is an excellent base stealer. Bigham, 5-11, 165, is a switch hitter and has a nice all-around game.
Butler said in-state talent is key for the program.
“I want to know every player in the state and have a chance to get them because this state loves the University of Arkansas,” Butler said. “We want every player that can play on this level to be a Razorback.”
Other high school signees are pitcher Geoffrey Davenport, 6-0, 155, of Fort Worth Paschal, infielder Jonathan Perlman, 6-0, 165, of Dallas Highland Park and infielder Kendall Wherle, 6-4, 190, of Papillion, Neb.
FAIR BACK ON RISE One 2009 football prospect to keep an eye on is running back / defensive back Stephen Houston of Little Rock Fair. Houston, 5-11, 205, rushed for more than 1, 100 yards last year. “He’s a yes sir, no sir kid,” Fair Coach Donald Harris said. “He works hard every day, doesn’t like to miss practice and is very athletic. He’s a good kid, and he’s going to be a good steal for somebody.” Harris said Houston has been offered a scholarship by Ole Miss. Houston attended the Rebels ’ camp June 8-11 and ran hand-held times of 4. 47 and 4. 42 seconds in the 40-yard dash. He posted a 4. 00 pro-shuttle time and a 35. 5-inch vertical jump.
Houston’s most impressive feat may have been winning the Class 5 A state championship in the 110 high hurdles despite running the event for the first time this spring. His electronic time of 14. 87 ranked No. 5 in the state.
Houston is receiving interest from Arkansas, Tennessee, Cincinnati, Ohio State, Iowa and Illinois. He said Arkansas recruiting coordinator Tim Horton is keeping tabs on him, and he plans to attend Arkansas’ senior camp July 19 along with camps at Tennessee and Cincinnati. Houston said he plans to wait until after his season before making a decision.
GLASER PICKS MISSOURI Springdale quarterback Ashton Glaser orally committed to Missouri on Thursday morning. Glaser, 6-2, 205, 4. 62, threw for close to 2, 500 yards and 22 touchdowns while completing 60 percent of his passes last year. He also rushed for 788 yards and 12 touchdowns. Glaser had an offer from Arkansas State and was drawing interest from Arkansas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Kansas State and Tulsa. Oral commitments are nonbinding. E-mail Richard Davenport at rdavenport@ark ansasonline. com Read Richard Davenport’s RECRUITING BLOG arkansasonline. com / recruiting