County Pitchers Feeling the Draft

With home run balls flying out of ballparks this season, no wonder major league teams took so many pitchers during the second day of the free-agent draft.

Twelve of the 17 local players picked in the final 30 rounds have pitching experience and all are right-handed. Two catchers also were taken.

A pair of four-year college prospects led the way.

In the 21st round, the Detroit Tigers selected former Canyon High pitcher Jeff Leuenberger. A junior, Leuenberger had a 6-3 record and a 4.42 ERA with three complete games at Long Beach State. His 86 strikeouts in 97.2 innings led the 49ers. He was originally a 12th-round pick of the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1997 draft.

Chapman pitcher Eric Albright was taken in the 34th round by the Chicago Cubs. Albright, who also played third base, hit .329 with a team-high 58 runs batted in. A recent pitching convert, he became the Panthers’ closer and struck out 19 batters in 21 2/3 innings.

Albright’s best shot at making the big leagues is as a pitcher, according to Chapman Coach Rex Peters.

“That’s about where we expected him to go,” Peters said. “If he didn’t, we were going to get him signed on somewhere as a free agent so he could prove what he could do.”

El Toro pitcher Eric Walsh was the top prep pick on the second day, going in the 23rd round to the Baltimore Orioles. He appeared in nine games and had 96 strikeouts.

Pitcher John-Paul Glascock of Fullerton College was also taken in the 23rd round by the Cubs.

Three players from Cal State Fullerton were selected, bringing the Titans’ draft total to six. Fullerton left-fielder Steve Woodward went in the 34th round to Arizona. Titan catcher Jeff Gates was selected by the New York Yankees two rounds later and Matt Sorensen, another pitcher, was taken in the 42nd round by Toronto.

Woodward set a school single-season record by batting .431.

Darin T. Davis, a second baseman for Cypress College, was selected by Colorado in the 26th round. Former Corona del Mar pitcher Matthew G. Larson, from Golden West College, was selected by San Francisco in the same round.

Former Trabuco Hills standout Todd A. Gelatka, one of the top pitchers in the Orange Empire Conference this season for Golden West, went to Milwaukee in the 28th round.

Brandon Espinosa, a Mater Dei pitcher who had 80 strikeouts, was chosen by Seattle in the 29th round.

James Garvey, who had a 9-2 record at La Quinta, was taken in the 39th round by Oakland.

Others drafted included Magnolia pitcher Brian Poetschlag (44th round, Minnesota), Cal Poly San Luis Obispo pitcher Michael Shwan, formerly of Edison and Orange Coast College (44th round, Milwaukee), Saddleback College pitcher Chad Cummings (44th round, St. Louis), Servite outfielder Patrick Breen (46th round, Toronto) and Whittier Christian catcher Peter Eberhardt (47th round, Minnesota).

Taken in the first day of drafting Monday were South Carolina’s Brandon Pack, a catcher who attended Cypress College and was selected in the 12th round (364th overall) by the Texas Rangers, and Cypress outfielder Daylon Monette, who was taken in the 17th round (509th overall) by the Pittsburgh Pirates.