LONG ON POTENTIAL: Among the more intriguing...

LONG ON POTENTIAL: Among the more intriguing Valley stories of this month’s major league baseball draft is that of pitcher Mike Delano of North Hollywood High School. Delano didn’t throw a single pitch for the school’s team this spring. But he’s 6 feet, 7 inches tall, and he’s left-handed. . . . So the St. Louis Cardinals took him in the 57th round.

MISSED HIM: Major league baseball teams spend millions of dollars scouring the country, looking for anyone who might be able to play professional baseball. They don’t miss many, but they missed Steve Reed. . . . A 1983 graduate of Chatsworth High, Reed went undrafted out of high school, junior college and college. The San Francisco Giants eventually signed him as a free agent. Now, he’s in his third year pitching for the Colorado Rockies.

TRIVIA MAN: Since the draft began in 1965, only one player has been the No. 1 pick in the country, yet ended his career without appearing in a major league game. . . . It’s Steve Chilcott, above, a former catcher at Antelope Valley High. The New York Mets made Chilcott the first pick in 1966, but injuries stalled his career before he could make the major leagues.

TIMES CHANGE: In case you were wondering if the escalating salaries of major leaguers have trickled down to players from Valley high schools, they have. . . . Tim Foli, of Notre Dame High in Sherman Oaks, was the No. 1 pick in 1968 and signed with the New York Mets for $75,000. In 1993, Brad Fullmer of Montclair Prep in Van Nuys was the 60th pick and signed with the Montreal Expos for $417,500.

STACKED TEAM: Perhaps the most talent-rich high school team in Valley history was the 1989 Chatsworth squad. Five players from that team--Rich Aude, Derek Wallace, Eric Johnson, Jason Evans and Mitch Root--were eventually drafted. . . . Only Aude, the first baseman for the Pittsburgh Pirates, is currently in the majors. Wallace, a first-round pick out of Pepperdine University in 1992, is the only other player to get close--he’s at triple-A Omaha with the Kansas City Royals.