baseball guide

In case you spent the day under a rock, no, UVA will not be the destination for T.J. McConnell.  It'll be Arizona after all.  Of course, you might have already known that and that's why you spent the day under a rock, which would be understandable.  Le sigh.  Since I don't have happy optimistic thoughts about our chances of getting Rice's Dylan Ennis, I don't know where we go from here on point guard recruiting.  It might involve a full-court press on Big Cat Barber.  Or it might involve Malcolm Brogdon moving sort of full-timish to the point.  Or who knows.

The better news is that South Carolina's Anthony Gill will be taking an official visit to Charlottesville this weekend, so we don't have long before we can transfer all our emotional eggs to another basket.  Gill is actually rather more likely to choose UVA than McConnell was - the Akil Mitchell connection is a big help - but there's no resting easy with UNC in the picture.  This is one where I hope Tony Bennett does a little negative recruiting: "listen, son, you go to UNC, they'll just recruit right over top of you like you're not even there."

But we're here today to talk a little baseball, and we would've been even had McConnell made a sensible damn decision instead of deciding to spend the next three years in the desert.  UVA's been churning out baseball draft picks lately, and I thought you might be interested to know where they all are to start the season.  Here is your handy guide, organized by league level.  This will likely be missing a few players that are actually under contract - John Barr would be a probable example - but are in extended camp and will most likely play short-season ball.  So I make no claims of comprehensiveness.

MAJORS

Javier Lopez
Position: RP
Drafted: 4th round, Diamondbacks, 1998
Current team: San Francisco Giants

It's fair if you don't remember Lopez; he was drafted in 1998, which predates my entry into UVA let alone my interest in Davenport Field as something other than a place to smuggle beer into and watch a free ballgame when I should be writing papers.  Lopez has carved out a nice career as a journeyman reliever despite being a better hitter than pitcher in college.

Mark Reynolds
Position: 3B
Drafted: 16th round, Diamondbacks, 2004
Current team: Baltimore Orioles

Reynolds, of course, is the modern day Rob Deer; his career Three True Outcomes average is in rarified air, a touch above .500, which is to say he's one of only three players in history where, when he comes to bat, it's more likely than not that the fielders can take a nap.  (The list of career TTO average leaders on that page includes three players employed by the Tigers in the early-to-mid-90s, which is why I had so much fun rooting for them growing up.  Win or lose, the score was always, like, 13-9.)

Ryan Zimmerman
Position: 3B
Drafted: 1st round, Nationals, 2005
Current team: Washington Nationals

I put Zimmerman here for the sake of being thorough, because a vague awareness of the existence of baseball is all you need to know about Zim.  Until Danny Hultzen last year, Zimmerman was the highest-drafted UVA ballplayer ever, a crown he took from Seth Greisinger, and he's still probably the best-known.

AAA

Jeremy Farrell
Position: 3B
Drafted: 8th round, Pirates, 2008
Current team: Indianapolis Indians (IN)
Affiliation: Pittsburgh Pirates
40-man roster: No

Brandon Guyer
Position: RF
Drafted: 5th round, Cubs, 2007
Current team: Durham Bulls (NC)
Affiliation: Tampa Bay Rays
40-man roster: Yes

Greg Miclat
Position: 2B
Drafted: 5th round, Orioles, 2008
Current team: Round Rock Express (TX)
Affiliation: Texas Rangers
40-man roster: No

Michael Schwimer
Position: RP
Drafted: 14th round, Phillies, 2008
Current team: Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Allentown, PA)
Affiliation: Philadelphia Phillies
40-man roster: Yes

Schwimer wrote a letter to Bill Simmons, which got published on Grantland, asking if it was cool to wear his New York Football Giants fanhood on his sleeve in Philadelphia.  I'm sure not one single former UVA teammate of his ever mentioned it.

AA

David Adams
Position: 2B
Drafted: 3rd round, Yankees, 2008
Current team: Trenton Thunder (NJ)
Affiliation: New York Yankees
40-man roster: Yes

Mike Ballard
Position: SP
Drafted: 14th round, Rangers, 2006
Current team: Harrisburg Senators (PA)
Affiliation: Washington Nationals
40-man roster: No

Andrew Carraway
Position: SP
Drafted: 12th round, Mariners, 2009
Current team: Jackson Generals (TN)
Affiliation: Seattle Mariners
40-man roster: No

Andrew Dobies
Position: RP
Drafted: 3rd round, Red Sox, 2004
Current team: NW Arkansas Naturals (Springdale, AR)
Affiliation: Kansas City Royals
40-man roster: No
Phil Gosselin
Position: 2B
Drafted: 5th round, Braves, 2010
Current team: Mississippi Braves (Pearl, MS)
Affiliation: Atlanta Braves
40-man roster: No

Danny Hultzen
Position: SP
Drafted: 1st round, Mariners, 2011
Current team: Jackson Generals (TN)
Affiliation: Seattle Mariners
40-man roster: Yes

Hultzen got roughed up in his first start, but is still likely on the fast track for advancement to the big club possibly as soon as this year.

Casey Lambert
Position: RP
Drafted: 6th round, Cubs, 2007
Current team: Bowie Baysox (MD)
Affiliation: Baltimore Orioles
40-man roster: No

Arm trouble has kept him off the mound since 2010.

Michael Mitchell
Position: OF
Drafted: 25th round, Rockies, 2007
Current team: Tulsa Drillers (OK)
Affiliation: Colorado Rockies
40-man roster: No

HIGH A

Tyler Cannon
Position: SS
Drafted: 12th round, Indians, 2010
Current team: Carolina Mudcats (Zebulon, NC)
Affiliation: Cleveland Indians
40-man roster: No

Sean Doolittle
Position: RP
Drafted: 1st supplemental, Athletics, 2007
Current team: Stockton Ports (CA)
Affiliation: Oakland A's
40-man roster: No

Dan Grovatt
Position: OF
Drafted: 11th round, Pirates, 2010
Current team: Bradenton Marauders (FL)
Affiliation: Pittsburgh Pirates
40-man roster: No

John Hicks
Position: C
Drafted: 4th round, Mariners, 2011
Current team: High Desert Mavericks (Adelanto, CA)
Affiliation: Seattle Mariners
40-man roster: No

Jarrett Parker
Position: OF
Drafted: 2nd round, Giants, 2010
Current team: San Jose Giants (CA)
Affiliation: San Francisco Giants
40-man roster: No

Steven Proscia
Position: 3B
Drafted: 7th round, Mariners, 2011
Current team: High Desert Mavericks (Adelanto, CA)
Affiliation: Seattle Mariners
40-man roster: No

Seattle, as well as the Indians, has been drafting the hell out of our players.  In a good way, not like the Red Sox which have a reputation for drafting our players before they play for us.

Beau Seabury
Position: C
Drafted: 13th round, Rockies, 2007
Current team: Potomac Nationals (VA)
Affiliation: Washington Nationals
40-man roster: No

Currently on the 7-day DL.

Kenny Swab
Position: C
Drafted: 21st round, Royals, 2011
Current team: Wilmington Blue Rocks (DE)
Affiliation: Kansas City Royals
40-man roster: No

MIDDLE A

Jeffrey Lorick
Position: RP
Drafted: 20th round, Braves, 2009
Current team: Peoria Chiefs (IL)
Affiliation: Chicago Cubs
40-man roster: No

Robert Morey
Position: SP
Drafted: 5th round, Marlins, 2010
Current team: Greensboro Grasshoppers (NC)
Affiliation: Miami Marlins
40-man roster: No

Morey is currently on the 7-day DL.

Will Roberts
Position: SP
Drafted: 5th round, Indians, 2011
Current team: Lake County Captains (Eastlake, OH)
Affiliation: Cleveland Indians
40-man roster: No

Tyler Wilson
Position: SP
Drafted: 10th round, Orioles, 2011
Current team: Delmarva Shorebirds (Salisbury, MD)
Affiliation: Baltimore Orioles
40-man roster: No