June 22, 2007
The 2007 Major League draft saw two members of the Notre Dame baseball team and five of the program’s signees/incoming players selected. As of June 22, only one of those players – junior pitcher Joey Williamson (see separate release on und.com) – had signed with the team that drafted him, with teams holding the draft rights until August 15. A recap of the 2007 draft follows below, including updated bio. capsules for the seven drafted Notre Dame players/signees. As noted previously, several of the Notre Dame signees were among the nation’s top-rated prospects but they each dropped far down in the draft due to their strong commitment to Notre Dame (a.k.a. “signability” issues).
Here are the seven players with Notre Dame connections who were selected:
• RHP Evan Danieli (HS Sr. 6-8/225; East Hanover, NJ/Seton Hall Prep) – 33rd round, Minnesota Twins?
• RHP/IF Ryan Sharpley (HS Sr. 6-4/185; Marshall, MI/Marshall HS) – 34th round, Chicago White Sox
• RHP Joey Williamson (ND Jr.; 6-1/195; Lantana, FL/Santaluces HS) -36th round, Colorado Rockies
• RHP Brian Dupra (HS Sr.; 6-3/195; Rochester, NY/Greece Athena HS) – 36th round, Texas Rangers
• C/1B Matt Scioscia (HS Sr.; 6-2/235; Westlake Village, CA/Encino Crespi HS – 41st round, Los Angeles Angels
• OF Golden Tate (HS Sr.; 6-1/180; Hendersonville, TN/Pope John Paul HS) – 42nd round (Arizona Diamondbacks)
• RHP Dan Kapala (ND Sr.; 6-4/215; Royal Oak, MI/Shrine Catholic HS) – 46th round (New York Yankees)
Brian Dupra was named the Gatorade player of the year for the state of New York while joining fellow Notre Dame signee Evan Danieli as two of the nation’s top-rated high school pitching prospects.
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(Notes: Sharpley is the brother of ND football QB/baseball 1B Evan Sharpley; Scioscia is the son of Angels manager Mike Scioscia; Tate is an ND football signee, as a WR/DB; Kapala currently is pitching with the Dubois County Bombers of the Central Illinois Collegiate League, a wood-bat summer league, but he could sign with the Yankees later in the summer.)
NUMBERS CAN BE DECEIVING – Notre Dame signees Evan Danieli (Minnesota Twins, 33rd round), Brian Dupra (Texas Rangers, 36th round) and Ryan Sharpley (Chicago White Sox, 34th round) all were among the nation’s top-rated prospects but it is general knowledge that they each dropped far down in the draft due to their strong commitment to Notre Dame … based on where the highly-regarded Perfect Game scouting service had them rated – Danieli as the 40th-best prospect in all of high school baseball, Dupra as the 55th and Sharpley at No. 140 – each of those players could have been selected somewhere in the first five rounds (presumably if teams were assured they would have signed and thus bypassed their college careers at Notre Dame) … Perfect Game has projected Notre Dame’s class as being one of the best in the nation and listed it (along with ones from Stanford, Vanderbilt, Rice and Tulane) as top classes that are “academically-insulated from the draft” … the Perfect Game text about the class includes the following: “Schools in this category can pretty much plan on their recruits coming to school and playing for at least three years-and frequently four. Stanford and Notre Dame both look to have one of their better classes in recent years. Few schools have commitments from three power arms as promising as Danieli, Dupra and Sharpley. [Greg] Sherry is the type of prototype college shortstop who should step in and contribute right away.” … also see the quotes included below (in the Danieli bio capsule) from an anonymous scout (in recent newspaper story), about Danieli being an “asterisk kid” due to his high draft status but strong school commitment.
NOTRE DAME DRAFT HISTORY – The past 13 seasons of Notre Dame baseball now have produced 38 players (not including signees) who have been selected in the Major League draft, counting each player once (with seven being drafted twice during their ND careers) … there also have been 12 ND players since 1995 who went on to pro ball as free-agent signees … Notre Dame players have been selected in 22 straight MLB drafts (dating back to 1985), with multiple Irish players being drafted every year since 1992 … the drafting of Williamson and Kapala marks the ninth time in the program’s history (sixth time in the past eight seasons) that multiple Notre Dame pitchers have been drafted in the first 50 rounds.
PRIMETIME PITCHERS – Five different Notre Dame pitchers were selected during the two-year span of the 2006 and 2007 Major League drafts … no previous two-year period in Notre Dame baseball history has seen more Irish pitchers selected in the MLB draft … in addition to the 2007 selections of Williamson and Kapala, Notre Dame earlier had an unprecedented three pitchers drafted in 2006: RHPs Jeff Samardzija (5th round, Cubs) and Jeff Manship (14th round, Twins) and LHP Tom Thornton (21st round, Tigers) … of the 19 former ND players currently active in professional baseball, 12 are pitchers.
CLUB-BY-CLUB – Notre Dame players (including the incoming signees who joined the Irish) now have been drafted or signed as a free agents a total of 139 times … the Cubs have drafted/signed the most ND players from that group (11) … next on the list are the Dodgers (10) and White Sox (10), followed by Blue Jays (8), Tigers (8), Twins (8), Yankees (5), Expos (5) and A’s (5) … teams that have drafted/signed an ND player (or incoming player/not including those who signed) four times include the Rangers, Angels, Rockies, Diamondbacks, Reds, Red Sox, Indians, Astros, Giants and Marlins while the Mariners have drafted/signed three ND players … the Braves, Pirates, Brewers, Phillies, Mets and Royals each have drafted/signed two ND players (the Cardinals, Orioles, Padres and old Washington Senators one each, plus one “co-op” free-agent signee).
Ryan Sharpley nearly led Marshall High School to a second straight Michigan state title in 2007.
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GOING WITH THE WHITE SOX – The drafting of Sharpley ties the White Sox with the Dodgers for the teams that have drafted the second-most ND players/signees (just one behind the Cubs) … the White Sox drafted three ND players in the late 1960/early 70s, including catcher Ken Plesha with the 17th pick of the 1st round in 1965 (Plesha signed, following that sophomore season in ’65) … the White Sox drafted another ND sophomore in 1967 (1B Dick Licini, in 11th round of the secondary phase) and later selected Irish OF Dick Lucke in 1970 (17 rd) … high school catcher Dennis Twombley was a 4th-round pick of the White Sox in 1993 but went on to play for the Irish … three different ND players on the 1995 team were drafted/signed by the White Sox that year: All-America OF Ryan Topham (4th rd, as a junior) and RHPs Tim Kraus (22nd round) and Garret Carlson (junior-year free agent) … ND closer Rich Sauget then was a free-agent signee of the White Sox in 1996 while current ND catcher Sean Gaston was a token pick of the White Sox coming out of high school (50th round).
YES TO YANKEES – Kapala is the fifth ND player/signee to be drafted by the Yankees in the past 13 years (but the first since 1997) … the Yankees selected one player with ND connections every year from 1995-98, starting with OF Mike Amrhein in 1995 (99th round), followed by C/1B George Restovich (1996; 17th rd), RHP Aaron Heilman as a high school senior in 1997 (54th round) and OF Allen Greene, who signed as a 9th-round pick following his junior season in 1998.
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HIGH – Williamson is the fifth Notre Dame player to be drafted by the Rockies, who now have drafted an Irish player in four of the past six seasons … SS Craig Counsell was a 11th-round pick of Colorado in 1992 (he has since gone on to play for World Series champions with Florida and Arizona and currently is a member of the Milwaukee Brewers) … the Rockies then drafted former Irish 3B/C Andrew Bushey in 2002 (15t rd), closer J.P. Gagne in 2003 (14th rd) and 3B Matt Macri in 2004 (7th rd).
Joey Williamson is one of 19 former Notre Dame players (12 of them pitchers) who are currently active in professional baseball.
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TWIN KILLINGS – Six former Notre Dame players have been Minnesota Twins drat picks or signees, most recently RHP Jeff Manship as a 14th-round pick in 2006 … others have included: RHP Robert Bentley (1966; 30th round; returned to ND); SS Joe Theismann (1971; 39th round; did not sign/played in NFL); 1B Dan Leatherman (1998; free agent); RHP Aaron Heilman (2000; supplemental round between 1st and 2nd; returned to ND); IF/RHP Matt Macri (2001; 7th round; HS senior); and C Javi Sanchez (2004; 14th round).
GOOD RANGE – In addition to drafting Dupra, the Texas Rangers can lay claim to drafting future big-leaguer Dan Peltier (1B/OF) from Notre Dame in the 1989 draft (3rd round) … the Rangers also drafted former ND outfielder Rowan Richards in 1996 (47th round) and selected ND first baseman Joe LaRocca back in 1972 (39th round).
ANGELS IN THE OUTFIELD – Scioscia follows three previous Notre Dame student-athletes who were drafted by the California/Anaheim Angels, most recently catcher Jeff Wagner in 1999 (21st round) … the only other Irish baseball player who has been drafted by the Angels was SS Paul Failla ((’94; 3rd round) while former ND football quarterback Tony Rice was a token 50th-round pick of the Angles in the 1990 draft.
DIAMONDS IN THE ROUGH – Notre Dame’s limited draft history with Arizona includes former infielder J.J. Brock signing a free-agent contract with the Diamondbacks in 1998 (following his fifth season with the Irish baseball program) while recent RHP Jeff Manship was drafted by Arizona in 2003 before opting to start his career with Notre Dame … Manship had been projected as a possible 1st-round pick but nearly went undrafted due to his strong convictions to play for the Irish (Arizona selected him with a token 50th-round selection) … former ND closer Ryan Doherty was a rare junior-year free-agent signee with the Diamondbacks in 2005.
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Joey Williamson UPDATED BIO CAPSULE – Selected by the Colorado Rockies in the 36h round of the 2007 MLB draft and signed in mid-June before reporting to the Northwest League’s Tri-City Dust Devils (Pasco, Wash.) … his three-year career stats with the Irish included a 4.52 ERA, 5-4 record and nearly a 3-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio (91/31) while averaging nearly a strikeout per inning (8.7 Ks/9 IP; 93.2 IP), plus 2 saves, 100 hits allowed (22 extra-bases, only 3 home runs), a .275 opp. batting avg., 24 hit batters and 5 wild pitches in 49 appearances (4 starts) … his pair of saves in 2007 actually tied for the team high … finished 2nd on staff in ERA (2.81), low opp. batting avg. (.225), strikeouts (53), appearances (17) and games finished (5), also 3rd in wins (4-3), innings (51.1), K-to-walk ratio (3.3; 53/16), strikeouts “looking” (13) and groundouts (53) … held opposing hitters to team-best .148 batting with 2-outs … averaged better than a strikeout per inning (9.3 Ks/9 IP, best on the staff) … equally effective vs. lefthanded (.222) and righthanded hitters (.226), with both marks ranking 2nd on the 2007 staff … allowed just 33% of leadoff batters to reach base (2nd on staff) … compiled a 10.2 WHIP (walks+hits per 9 IP) that included 7.4 hits (2nd on staff) and 2.8 walks (4th) per 9.0 innings … allowed .241 opponent batting with runners on base (3rd on staff) … averaged 3.0 innings per appearance (5th on staff), despite making just a pair of starts … his other season stats include 47 hits allowed (2 HR, 2 3B, 7 2B), 8 hit batters and 2 wild pitches … struggled early with letting inherited runners score but ultimately lowered his season “IRS” number to 5-of-14 inherited runners that scored (36%) … his steady production out of the bullpen included allowing just 2-for-13 batting by the first hitters he has faced as a relief pitcher (with 3 Ks and a double-play ball, plus a sac. bunt and a sac. fly) … allowed an unearned run as hard-luck loser in 2-1, opening-week game vs. Texas State, in San Antonio (3 IP, 3 H, 3 Ks, HB) … saved 4-1 win over #12 TCU the next weekend in Myrtle Beach (3 IP, H, BB, 2 Ks) … took loss as starter at Stetson (1.1 IP, 2 R/1 ER, H, 3 BB, 2 HB; 4-5) … logged 3.0 relief innings vs. Harvard, in Clearwater (2 R, 3 H, BB, 2 Ks; 0-4) … racked up career-high 7 Ks later on that Spring Break trip while pitching up 11-4 relief win over Dayton, at Florida Gulf Coast (4 IP, 3 H, BB, WP) … pitched in early home win over Cleveland State (2 IP, R, 2 B, 3 Ks; 5-3) … tagged with loss in first BIG EAST series, vs. South Florida (0.1 IP, 3 R/2 ER, 2 H, BB; 10-13) … logged 3.0 shutout innings vs. Central Michigan (H, 3 Ks; 4-8) … suffered relief loss at Pittsburgh (4 IP, 3 R/1 ER, 4 H, HB, 5 Ks; 0-5) but followed with bullpen victory at Cincinnati (4 IP, UER, 3 H, 4 BB, HB, WP, 4 Ks; 9-5) … pitched 3.1 innings in 6-1 loss to Georgetown (3 R, 5 H, HB, 3 Ks) … saved game-2 win over West Virginia (3 IP, 2 R, 4 H, BB, 3 Ks; 17-6) … pitched in second game of doubleheader at Rutgers (1.1 IP, 3 Ks; 0-7) and then picked up the win the next day as Irish rallied to take series finale, 6-4 (2.2 IP, R, 2 H, BB, K; 6-4) … had similar win in 6-4 game the following weekend, vs. Seton Hall (4.1 IP, 2 H, 6 Ks) … logged 4.0 shutout innings in game-2 at Louisville (H, 3 Ks; 3-4) … the four-game stretch vs. RU (2), SHU and UL saw him allow just one run in 12.1 innings (0.73 ERA), with 13 Ks, 5 hits allowed and only one “freebie” (1 BB, 0 HB, 0 WP) … started vs. Connecticut in his final appearance of the season, taking loss in another 4-3 game (5 IP, 4 R/3 ER, 7 H, BB, 2 HB, 5 Ks).
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Dan Kapala UPDATED BIO CAPSULE – Selected y the New York Yankees in the 46th round of the 2007 Major league draft … had returned to action with Notre Dame in the 2007 season, after undergoing shoulder surgery that caused him to miss all of Notre Dame’s 2006 season … suffered the injury in his final outing during the summer of 2006, with the Cape Cod League’s Falmouth Commodores … has a fifth year of eligibility remaining and thus could pitch for the Irish in 2008 … his three-year career totals include a 3.26 ERA, .266 opponent batting average and nearly twice as many strikeouts (104) as walks (54) in 163.0 innings … also has compiled a deceiving 9-10 career record, plus a pair of saves, 165 hits allowed (12 home runs), 10 wild pitches and 20 hit batters in 65 appearances (16 starts) … entered three-man rotation one month into season and ultimately made 3rd-most starts on staff (7, plus 5 relief appearances) while finishing 4th in ERA (3.92) and strikeouts “looking” (10), also finishing 5th on the staff in low opp. batting avg. (.278) and innings pitched (41.1) … compiled 2nd-best walk ratio on team (with just 2.4 BB per 9 IP) … averaged 3.1 IP per appearance (3rd-best on staff) … also 4th on staff in groundouts per 9 IP (11.1) … held lefthanded batters to .256 batting avg. (4th-best on staff) … had a 12.0 WHIP (walks+hits per 9 IP) that included 9.6 hits allowed per 9 IP (5th-best on staff) … allowed just one home run (plus 11 doubles and a triple) … compiled better than a 2-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio (23/11), with his other 2007 season stats including 9 hit batters, 3 wild pitches and a balk … pitched well enough to win several games but finished with deceiving 0-6 record in 2007, due to poor run support, inconsistent defense (8 of 26 runs charged to him were unearned) and bullpen breakdowns … opened season with 2.0 relief innings vs. Texas State, in San Antonio (R, H, K, HB; 0-6) … also threw an inning vs. Coastal Carolina, in Myrtle beach (K; 0-4) and then logged 3.2 at Stetson (R, 2 H, 3 Ks; 4-5) … made first start on March 11 vs. Harvard, in Clearwater (3 IP, 2 R/1 ER, 5 H, BB, 3 Ks; loss, 0-4) … had no-decision in start at end of Spring Break, vs. Dayton at Florida Gulf Coast (4 IP, UER, 4 H, BB, HB, K; 5-2) … tagged with loss vs. South Florida, despite not allowing an earned run (5 IP, 2 UER, 4 H, BB, WP, 3 Ks; 1-9) … hard-luck loser the next week at Cincinnati (6 IP, 4 R/1 ER, 5 H, 3 BB, 3 Ks; 3-4) … missed next two starts due to minor injury but did pitch in relief vs. West Virginia, on April 22 (2.1 IP, 3 R, 4 H, 2 WP; 7-16) … put Irish in position for win as starter the next week at league leader Rutgers, getting no-decision in that 6-4 game (5.1 IP, 3 R/2 ER, 8 H, BB, HB, 3 Ks) … also drew no-decision in 6-4 win over Seton Hall (4.2 IP, 4 R, 3 H, 3 BB, 2 HB, 5 Ks) … made final start at Louisville (4 IP, 4 R, 6 H, 4 HB; loss, 3-4) before short relief stint vs. Connecticut (0.1 IP, R, 2 H; loss, 6-7) … one of top pitchers on 2005 staff (3.20, 7-3, 41 Ks, 27 BB, 84 H/.268 in 81.2 IP and 25 GP/9 GS) … logged five complete games in that 2005 season … his top 2005 outings included win over Pittsburgh in BIG EAST title game (5.2 IP, 5 H, 4 R/3 ER, 3 BB, WP, 5 Ks; 11-4) and victory over North Carolina in elimination game at NCAA Gainesville Regional (8 IP, 8 H, BB, 3 Ks, 12 GOs, 3 DP balls; 3-0), leaving both games after long rain delays … earned spot on 2005 NCAA Regional all-tournament team (also had pitched earlier in relief during 5-1 loss to UNC, with 2 IP, 2 H, BB) … helped secure spot in four-team 2005 BIG EAST Tournament with win over West Virginia in final week of regular season (7 IP, R, 5 H, BK, 5 Ks; 3-1) … served as tough righthanded setup man as a freshman in 2004 (2.70, 2-1, SV, 40 Ks, 16 BB, 37 H/.248, 28 GP).
Evan Danieli, with Yogi Berra (left) and Alex Rodriguez (right) at the 2006 Aflac All-America game.
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EVAN DANIELI UPDATED BIO CAPSULE – Selected by the Minnesota Twins in the 33rd round of the 2007 MLB draft, after falling significantly due to his strong commitment to play at Notre Dame (Baseball America projected him as the draft’s #157 overall prospect, including college players, while Perfect Game rated him 40th among all high school prospects for the 2007 draft) … already has been named to three 2007 All-America teams, with those honors coming from Collegiate Baseball magazine, Aflac and Playstation (others TBA) … also named first team all-county and named most valuable pitcher on talented Seton Hall Prep staff (other honors TBA) … his impressive 2007 season at Seton Hall Prep – the nation’s No. 1-ranked team – included an 11-0 record (setting the SHP record for wins in a season), 0.45 ERA and a 3-to-1 ratio of strikeouts (81) to walks (27), with more than twice as many innings pitched (62) as hits allowed (28) … allowed just 4 earned runs all season … helped SHP win its third straight state title (10-1 over St. Joseph’s) … joined two of his teammates – fellow RHP Rick Porcello and centerfielder Steven Brooks – in receiving All-America honors … one of four players on the 2007 SHP team who signed with Division I programs (Porcello with North Carolina, Brooks with Wake Forest and rightfielder Nick Natale with Rice) … would have been the ace pitcher on nearly any team in America (Porcello was projected by some as the #2 overall prospect for the 2007 draft and recently was named the Gatorade national player of the year) … went 6-plus innings to beat Immaculata in the non-public state title game/sectional final, 3-0 (3 H, 3 BB, 6 Ks) … outdueled Immaculata’s Sean McKeown, who had posted 19 straight wins … Danieli’s season highlights included two wins over Morris County powerhouse Randolph, plus a postseason win over a tough St. Peter’s Prep squad … named USA Today national pitcher of the week in early May, after notching a pair of shutout wins while totaling 13 strikeouts and allowing just 3 hits in 11 combined innings … threw his fastball consistently in the low-90s during the 2007 season while showing a tough late-breaking curveball … helped SHP compile a 32-1 record, with the only coming on May 11 vs. Roxbury (the Pirates finished with a 1.53 staff ERA and .353 team batting avg.) … an avid chess and ping-pong player who maintains a 3.71 GPA … played at Seton Hall Prep for Mike Sheppard, Jr., who now has guided the Pirates to six state titles over the past 22 seasons (he is the son of former longtime Seton Hall University coach Mike Sheppard, Sr., who has another son Rob Sheppard, who is the current SHU coach and brother of the Seton Hall Prep skipper) … Sheppard on Danieli (appeared in Daily Record, 6/3/07): “He could easily be a No. 1 on any other staff. He has handled it very well. He has never said, ‘Coach, why am I not getting the ball here?’ Where he gets drafted all depends on the organization. He has a scholarship to Notre Dame, which is an outstanding school.” … an identified scout in the same article had the following to say about Danieli: “He is an asterisk kid. It is very important that the general public understand the draft is not all about talent in order of ability, it’s ability plus signability. If Danieli slips to the 28th round, it’s not because he was overrated. He just has more options. That scares away teams. Our objective is to sign players, not lose our second-round pick to Notre Dame. No way would we take him early if we know we cannot sign him. No one will take a chance if they cannot sign him. It is not in order of ability. We wish it was and wish we had a million dollars for every kid like him, but we don’t.”
Brian Dupra
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BRIAN DUPRA UPDATED BIO CAPSULE – Selected by the Texas Rangers in the 36th round of the 2007 Major League draft, after falling significantly from his projected talent level to his “signability” issues and his strong commitment to joining the Notre Dame program … had been projected by Baseball America as the #116 overall prospect (including college and high school players) for the 2007 draft while Perfect Game had him slotted #162 … compiled a 0.21 ERA, 9-1 record and eye-popping 11.6 strikeout-to-walk ratio (93/8) during 2007 season at Greece Athena High School, with his other season stats including 27 more innings pitched (65.1) than hits allowed (38), a pair of saves and 6 hit batters … also an accomplished position player who hit .443 during the 2007 season (39-for-88, 27 RBI, 22 runs, home run, 9 doubles, only 5 Ks, .541 on-base pct.) … led Trojans to 22-3 record and state semifinalist finish, losing 2-1 to North Rockland … he had allowed just one earned run all season and was undefeated before the semifinal loss, finishing the year having allowed two earned runs and four unearned … his 2007 honors (all-state team is TBA) include Gatorade New York State Player of the Year, honorable mention All-America (Collegiate Baseball magazine), county player of the year, Rochester area player of the year, sectional playoff MVP, scholar-athlete award and team MVP … helped team rack up 40-3 scoring margin spanning four sectional tournament games, as the Trojans advanced to the state tournament for the first time since 1999 … struck out eight in the state tournament qualifier win over Fairport (8-1), with only one walk in the game and seven groundouts over the first 4.0 innings … had a 2-run single and later struck out the final batter on three pitches to save Section V Tournament title game (4-0 vs. Hilton) … beat Brockport earlier in the section tournament, 11-2 (5 IP, 3 H, 5 Ks), after also beating Brighton 11-0 (5 IP, 3 H, 9 Ks) … struck out 11 Fairport batters in regular-season game during early May (6 IP, 5 H, 2 BB; 9-0) … one week earlier, he played a lead role in 2-1 win over Hilton – after going the distance for the 12-K, 5-hitter while also supplying a 2-out RBI single … saved 4-2 win over Arcadia (also 2B/RBI/R/SF) … had 3-hit game with 4 RBI in 13-4 win over Irondequoit … had an even better game in earlier 16-2 win over Olympia (4 H, 4 RBI) … posted early 5-hitter vs. Thomas HS (8 Ks, BB; 3-0) and logged 6.0 shutout innings to beat Brockport (3 H, 9 Ks; 8-0) … a gifted all-around student-athlete who owns a 3.68 cumulative GPA and is a talented trumpet player, in addition to signing in the Greece Athena’s nationally-renowned show choir … likely to face former GAHS catcher Joe Pavone during the 2008 season (Pavone also has signed on to play in the BIG EAST, at UConn) … GAHS head coach Jason Bunting, on Dupra: “Brian is the kind of kid everyone wants their son to be like. The fact that he’s such a successful baseball player is just a bonus. I don’t know anyone who roots against him.”
Ryan Sharpley
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RYAN SHARPLEY UPDATED BIO CAPSULE – Selected by the Chicago White Sox in the 34th round of the 2007 MLB draft … would have been drafted much higher, if not for his strong commitment to Notre Dame (Perfect Game rated him the #141 prospects among all high school players for the 2007 draft) … completed a highly successful career at Marshall High School by compiling a 0.90 ERA during the 2007 season, with a 7-4 record and a pair of saves, plus nearly a 3-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio (101 Ks/35 BB) and almost twice as many innings pitched (70) as hits allowed (38) … a standout two-way player who hit .380 with 5 home runs during the 2007 season … his various 2007 honors included all-Southwest Michigan Athletic Conference, first team BIG 16, all-district, all-area, academic all-district and team MVP (also served as team captain) … named to the 2007 Under-Armour Pre-Season All-American Team (he did not play in the Preseason All-America game; note that Under-Armour does not name an All-America team after the season) … also named to the 2007 preseason all-Midwest Region team (Rawlings/ABCA), with the ABCA postseason all-region teams still TBA … picked up win over Homer High School in late March, ending Homer’s 89-game winning streak with his 9 strikeouts and 5.0 innings of no-hit ball … helped Marshall compiled 20-12 record in 2007 that included winning the SMAC East Championship and reaching the state semifinals … registered victories in the district and regional playoff rounds while also saving the Redhawks quarterfinal win before losing 3-0 game to Michigan HS in the semifinals … led Marshall to the state final four in each of his final two seasons, with a postseason record of 6-1 spanning those ’06 and ’07 seasons … nominated for the state Baseball Scholar Athlete Award (TBA) … had a pair of hits and drove in a run during the district final win over Harper Creek (6-0), after striking out 12 earlier in the day during the 6-3 district semifinal win over Parma … playing with the Cincinnati Midland Redskins during the summer of 2007 (former ND players Steve Sollmann and Javi Sanchez also played for the Redskins during their prep careers).
Matt Scioscia
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MATT SCIOSCIA UPDATED BIO CAPSULE – Selected by the Los Angeles Angels in the 41st round of the 2007 MLB draft … a two-sport standout (football/baseball) at Crespi Carmelite High School in Encino/Westlake Village, Calif. … expected to make big strides in baseball as he benefits from focusing on one sport … named to the 2007 Playstation All-America team and went on to collect a hit a pair of RBI in the All-America game … ranked among the Mission League leaders in RBI while helping lead Crespi to the CIF state semifinals … had three hits in the Celts semifinal loss to league rival Loyola (3-2, in 8 innings; held at Loyola Marymount), with Crespi finishing the season 24-6-1 (10-2 as Mission League champs) … hit 2-out single in the 8th inning of that game, putting the potential go-ahead run in scoring position … Crespi earlier beat West Covina in the first round (3-2), Corona del Mar in the second round (19-4) and California in the quarterfinals (8-5) … had a mammoth home run vs. Loyola earlier in the 2007 season … saw each of his fellow seniors on the 2007 Crespi baseball team be drafted and signed by a major D-I college program … played during 2007 season alongside Crespi teammate Nikolai Bonds, son of Barry Bonds … the younger Bonds, a junior outfielder in 2007, had focused on basketball in recent years and had not played organized baseball in five years … the younger Scioscia, has undergone a recent growth spurt and now is 6-2, 220 pounds (as tall as his father, Angels manager and former 15-year big leaguer Mike Scioscia) … has been credited with having a sense of leadership that is similar to his father’s … wore his father’s number (14) during the 2007 All-America Game, which was held in Albuquerque (the elder Scioscia played for the Albuquerque Dukes from 1979-80 and later managed the team in 1999) … in addition to Scioscia, five other sons of former big-leaguers were in the 2007 All-American Game: Bobby Bucker (son of Bill Buckner); Craig Gullickson (Bill), Glen Johnson (Howard) and Chance Ruffin (Bruce) … the elder Scioscia – who recently missed an Angels game to attend Matt’s graduation from Crespi – has been touted as one of the best defensive catchers to ever play the game and, arguably, the best ever at blocking home plate … Matt Scioscia comments about his father’s influence on his baseball skills: “My dad takes time out of the day and pretty much instilled in me the values and skills as a catcher. He’s pretty much taken me aside and under his wing. He works with me on my game and it’s really a joy. He has taught me a good work ethic, showing me how to keep my head down, stay within myself and be tough.” … Scioscia on Notre Dame: “I’m focused on getting a college degree first. It’s just kind of a dream come true. I used to love watching their football games on TV and I’m real close to my grandma and she’s a big Notre Dame fan, so she got me on the Notre Dame train. I’m probably going to major in finance at Notre Dame and do something along the lines of business when my baseball playing days are over.” … Mike Scioscia bio. summary: drafted out of high school by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first round (1976); spent 15 seasons as a big-league catcher, including 12 with the Dodgers (1980-92); member of World Series championship teams with the Dodgers in 1981 and ’88; played sparingly in 1993 and ’94 seasons due to shoulder injury (was member of San Diego Padres and Texas Rangers to end his playing career); served as dodgers minor-league catching coordinator in 1995 and ’96, then was the team’s bench coach in 1997-98, also filling in briefly in ’97 as the Dodgers’ third base coach; managed the Peoria Javelins to the 1997 Arizona Fall League title; has served as the Angels manager since 1999, winning the 2002 World Series (with his son Matt there for each of the World Series games).
Golden Tate
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GOLDEN TATE UPDATED BIO CAPSULE – Speedy lefthanded batter and thrower who was drafted by Arizona Diamondbacks scout and former Notre Dame player Matt Haas (who picked Tate in the 42nd round)… considered to have “plus” tools in the areas of outfield defense and all-around speed, with raw and developing bating ability but good hand-eye co-ordination … Haas and current Notre Dame assistant coach Sherard Clinkscales are friends due to their past history as fellow scouts … according to Clinkscales, Haas told him that Tate “could be a Kenny Lofton type of player, if he was able to dedicate himself more to baseball and get enough work in for improving his swing” … one of nation’s top football prospects who saw his senior baseball season at Pope John Paul II High School end in late March, due to a thumb injury … shifted over to the track-and-field team at the end of the 2007 spring semester and posted the top qualifying times in both the 100-meter dash (10.93) and 200-meter dash (22.33) … suffered hamstring injury near end of the state 100-meter final and was unable to compete in the 200 or the 800-meter relay … his younger brother Wesley Tate was the #3 seed in the 200 (22.53 qualifying time) and finished as the runner-up, in a time of 22.59 … the Tate brothers – who both made their first appearances in the state track meet – had combined with Darrell Wallace and Tyler Peoples top post the state’s top qualifying time in the 800-meter relay (1:30.28) … his junior-year baseball season in 2006 included earning all-region, all-state and all-county honors as a centerfielder while also being named to the TBCA Region Showcase Team (held at Middle Tennessee State) as well as to the Team Tennessee squad that competed in the Sunbelt Classic Showcase, held in Oklahoma … four-year varsity player in high school who has been playing baseball since the age of six … could develop into an effective hitter, with great speed down the basepath out of the lefthanded batters box (he consistently has been timed at 6.4 or 6.5 seconds over 60 meters) … played 2006 summer ball with the Columbia Post 19 team … his brother Wesley is a three-sport star (football, basketball, track) who has begun to receive interest from college football programs (he will be a junior in the fall of 2007) … also has 11-year-old twin sisters, Breanna and Deanna.