Angels Pick Wright State Pitcher

Brian Anderson, a left-handed pitcher from Wright State who idolized Nolan Ryan as a youngster, was the Angels’ top pick on the first day of the free-agent draft Thursday.

With the future of Pete Janicki, last year’s No. 1 pick, in doubt because of a fractured elbow suffered in the second inning of his first professional game, the Angels were eager to bolster their pitching ranks.

And why not?

This year’s draft was well-stocked with quality pitchers, including Anderson, Jeff Granger, a left-hander from Texas A&M;, Darren Dreifort, a right-hander from Wichita State, and Wayne Gomes, a right-hander from Old Dominion.

The Angels, who had the third pick overall, selected Anderson instead of Granger. Dreifort was selected by the Dodgers, who had the second pick, and Gomes was taken by the Philadelphia Phillies, who picked fourth. Granger was the No. 5 pick, going to Kansas City.

“Yeah, I’m excited,” Anderson said. “I’m real excited to be an Angel. It was a great relief when they called. I heard a lot of good things about the Angels. They have a lot of talented, young players. I’ve heard the manager, Buck Rodgers, is good at working with young guys.”

The Angels scouted Anderson extensively over the last few months and seemed unfazed by the fact that Wright State is off college baseball’s beaten path. The school in Dayton, Ohio, plays in the Mid-Continent Conference, but faced Arizona and Ohio State in nonconference games.

The Angels liked Anderson’s control most of all. This season, he had a 10-1 record with a 1.14 earned-run average in 14 games, striking out 98 and walking six.

“It’s something I’ve worked on my whole life,” Anderson said of his control. “It’s something that came naturally. The speed came later.”

Anderson throws a fastball, clocked in the 90-m.p.h. range this year, a curveball and a slider.

“I’ve heard that a fair comparison is to say he’s a Jimmy Key-type pitcher,” said Bob Fontaine, the Angels’ director of scouting. “Left-handed pitching is always a priority. He has a real feel for pitching, and we feel he has quite a future.”

Anderson said he hopes to sign as quickly as possible.

“We’ll have to sit down and talk,” he said. “It won’t be something that’s drawn out all summer. It will be taken care of in a reasonable amount of time.”

Said Fontaine: “I think anybody you take that high in the first round, you’re confident you can sign.”

On the second round, the Angels picked right-hander Ryan Hancock of Brigham Young. They made high school left-hander Matt Perisho of Tempe, Ariz., their third choice, and Stanford left-hander Andrew Lorraine their fourth choice.

They also selected Arizona infielder George Arias in the seventh round and Oregon State third baseman Jamie Burke in the ninth.