CSUN’s Sharts Signs Contract With Indians

In his two-year career on the Cal State Northridge baseball team, first baseman Scott Sharts sent many shots over the left-field fence. Enough, in fact, to make him the school’s career home-run leader.

He also found success as a starting pitcher, recording 11 victories in 1991. But make no mistake, when Sharts was selected by the Cleveland Indians in the 10th round of Monday’s amateur draft, it was for one reason.

“He has a lot of power,” said Indians’ scout Ed Crosby, who signed Sharts to a minor-league contract Saturday. “Hopefully, he’ll be hitting them in Lake Erie for us real soon.”

Sharts will report Monday to Cleveland, where he will participate in a five-day mini-camp, which Crosby termed a “mini-spring training.” Cleveland Manager John McNamara and his staff are expected to attend.

At the completion of the camp, Sharts will report to Cleveland’s Class-A affiliate in Watertown, N.Y., a member of the New York-Penn League. Sharts will play first base, Crosby said.

Terms of the contract were not revealed, but Crosby said Sharts received a significant signing bonus.

“For the 10th round, it was good money,” Sharts said. “I took a lot of time to think it out, and I was ready to go ahead with it.”

Sharts said he was ready to leave pitching behind.

“I guess I won’t have to worry about a sore arm for a while,” he said. “I’ll have a lot of quality time to put in on my hitting.”

Sharts, a 6-foot-6, 225-pound junior, was known for his power production long before he put on a Northridge uniform.

At Simi Valley High, Sharts slammed 32 home runs, a career record for Southern Section players. He was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates as a senior in 1988 but signed a letter of intent with Miami. He left the school after one season, during which he had just 36 at-bats.

His decision to enroll at Northridge instantly proved to be a wise one. In his career at Northridge, Sharts hit a school-record 51 home runs. In 63 games this season, Sharts batted .290 and recorded team highs in home runs (22) and runs batted in (64). Sharts hit a Matador single-season record 29 home runs as a sophomore in 1990.

As a pitcher, the right-hander was a combined 17-9 in two seasons at Northridge. Last season, he was 11-6 with an earned-run average of 3.47.

Crosby said he plans to begin talks with Northridge infielder Denny Vigo, a 27th-round selection of the organization, today. Vigo batted .229 with seven home runs during an injury-plagued junior season.