[krh44]

Any LU players going to get drafted today?

[A.G.]

Much of the draft is about hype and the coaches getting out and promoting his players that might have a shot. If coach doesn't promote, then guys get overlooked. You can't tell me that some LU guys are not worthy of a day one (18 rounds) selection. Even Grijalva is draft-eligible. One has to ask if Royer is even going to bat FOR his players?

[Chris Lang]

Now you're just being silly, A.G., and your bias against Royer is clearly showing.

I've covered several drafts, and it's a total crapshoot. Mike Piazza will probably be a Hall of Famer, and he went in the 62nd round. Some of the best "can't miss" picks ever like Brien Taylor and Todd Van Poppel amounted to nothing.

As good as YOU think Laurent, Grijalva and Just are, remember that hitters in the college and high school ranks are a dime a dozen. I like Phil and think he's pretty good, but he's not an above average fielder and he wasn't a first-team all-conference selection (a crime, I say). He's also a college senior, and front offices would rather take the same guy who is an 18-year-old than a 22-year-old like Phil. It's all about potential.

The coaches, specifically Randy Tomlin, deal with a lot of the day-to-day stuff with scouts. Trust me, they are going to bat for the players. But you know what? No, there were no top-18 round picks on this Liberty team. And to blame that on Royer "not going to bat" for his players is ridiculous and ignorant.

I know I'm coming off as sounding like a Royer apologist, but I'm not. There are legitimate criticisms (the schedule) and there are ridiculous ones like this.

[Guest]

just relax for a few weeks and then the answers should come out

[Hold My Own]

Jeff Barber thought Laurent would go in the top 10 rounds and he has a pretty impressive past in baseball and is a good talent evaluator...but as we all know there are several things that can take place to change things...things that may be in the publics eye and then things that the public will never know

[Chris Lang]

Phil himself didn't sound all that confident about being drafted AT ALL, no less the top 10 rounds. He already has made contacts in the Northern League and will be able to play independent ball if he doesn't get signed. The only teams looking at him were Oakland and the White Sox.

It's not that Phil's not a good player. He is. But you can find a lot of solid hitting outfielders in the college and high school game, ones that are closer to five toolers than Phil is. Pitchers, on the other hand, are harder to find, which is why it was disappointing for Page and Solbach to have to go through the years they did with injuries. Both had pretty decent chances of opening some eyes, but they pitched hurt all year.

[Chris Lang]

HMO ... with all due respect to Jeff, he's not a major league scout. I know plenty of them in the Diamondbacks and Pirates organizations, and I know exactly the type of player that will go high in the draft. Phil has a lot working against him.

[A.G.]

Chris, I was just raising a "what if." Yes, I have bias, but as some say, "youneverknow!"

Time go watch the draft tracker and see if LU gets some nibbles today.

[Hold My Own]

Chris, if he was in line for a GM position for the Expos then he HAS to be able to evaluate talent....all MLB GM's do, they are the final decision....I'm just telling you his opinion...not mine, I'm pretty sure he'll be drafted today but Top 10 was very slim...but I think we can count the A's out for any LU player

[Rocketfan]

Thats probably because NO one wanted the job...no disrespect to him, but the expos before the move to DC had embarrasing attendance and no one wanted to work there. I mean that was a glorified triple A squad.....why because as soon as the players got good, they got huge contracts elsewhere and were replaced by more "minor league" talent.

The Royer comment was just outta line...a bias is one thing, but that takes it to a whole new level.

[Hold My Own]

Please, I know of 5 young guys for the Pirates right now that are just waiting for Littlefield to be fired (which would happen this year if the All-Star game was somewhere different) so they can take over, one of them seems to be ready to go right now...and this is the Pirates!

but this is way off topic so we'll get back on, but that is disrespectful to Barber b/c there are thousands and I really do mean that who would DIE to be a GM anywhere wither it be Tampa or Pitt

[Guest]

Maybe AG was correct, like I said, just give it a few weeks and everything should come out....just wait guys, dont blast ANYONE yet, AG or Royer

[Libertine]

Chris, if he was in line for a GM position for the Expos then he HAS to be able to evaluate talent....all MLB GM's do, they are the final decision....I'm just telling you his opinion...not mine, I'm pretty sure he'll be drafted today but Top 10 was very slim...but I think we can count the A's out for any LU player

He's also the AD at Liberty University, the guy (outside of the coaches) most responsible for promoting LU's sports programs. I think this was clearly a case of him making a statement that over-reached the facts in an attempt to drum up interest (within baseball and the Lynchburg community) in the particular player and LU by extension. We would all be well-advised to take everything any AD or head coach says w/ a hefty grain of salt.

Edit: That isn't to say he was lying when he said what he did, just conveniently ignorant of all the factors involved --- much like those people who post on message boards.

[Hold My Own]

WU OF just got picked up by the Phil's Jacob Dempsey pick 637

[Rocketfan]

So you are saying thousands of people would have wanted the oppurtunity to be the GM of a team with 0 chance at success and 100% chance of being the laughing stock of baseball. There is/was no upside to that position. I think its respect for him that he was smart enough not to take it. The words " in line" for the position though are pretty vague and i can't imagine Barber hanging his hat on that accomplishment.

As for the Pirates, i highly doubt a manager is holding 5 guys back for no reason.....i mean you can at least post what positions they play. I mean some positions on that team aren't up for grabs currently, i mean Castillo and Sanchez are playing out of this world right now and Casey just got back from injury.

[Hold My Own]

HUH? In the MLB there is a GM (has nothing to do with the head coach who is known as a Manager, not GM)....and yes there are several people within the organization that are in line for a GM gig...1 example is a buddy of mine, Bryan Minniti (about 26 years old), he's the assistant of baseball operations...and he'd kill to have the Tampa job right now, but it really doesnt matter b/c he'll have a prime time job within 2 years....another example is another friend of mine, Dayton Moore who is looked at as the top assistant GM in the game, he was in line for the Braves job within the next few years...yet he took the ROYALS JOB.....the ROYALS!!!! It doesnt get worse than that, but that proves any job in the MLB is an honor, heck in the last 2 years every GM opening has had his name as a candidate, and Peter Gammons mentions him everytime b/c he is as good as it gets yet he took the Royals, b/c he's not about what they are now....heck most would love to take a team like the Pirates/Rays/Royals b/c there's only one way to go...a lot more "big names" would take the Pirates job over the Yankees job any day of the week


I still have no idea why you mentioned players in this conversation


Brokeback, I know...you dont even need to say anything!

[Chris Lang]

Solbach went in the 48th round.

[A.G.]

How in the heck is the local kid NOT coming to LU? Going to LC--are you kidding me?

http://www.newsadvance.com/servlet/Sate ... th=!sports

Grant, LU's Solbach pass on Major League draft

By Nathan Warters
Lynchburg News & Advance


Heritage High School's Cameron Grant and Liberty University's Michael Solbach are choosing college baseball over the minor leagues.

Both were selected Wednesday in the later rounds of the Major League Baseball amateur draft, Grant by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 44th round (1,333rd pick) and Solbach by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 48th round (1,429th pick), but both decided to continue their careers in college with the hopes of possibly increasing their stocks for future drafts.

"I'm going to come back to school," said Solbach, who went 7-4 with a 4.66 earned run average and 71 strikeouts for the Flames last season. "I'm going to play next year and see what happens."

Grant plans to put off the pros for a few years to play baseball at Division III Lynchburg College.

"I'm going to go to college for three years, and hopefully after that I'll be ready for pro ball," he said.

NCAA baseball rules require baseball players at four-year schools to complete three years - or be 21 years old at least 45 days before the draft - to be eligible for the draft. If Cameron attends Lynchburg College, he would have to wait until June of 2009 before being drafted again.

"It's something I've got to do to get better," he said.

Grant was the Seminole District player of the year after batting .379 with four home runs and 12 RBIs. His speed might be his greatest attribute. He stole six bases this season.

He ran indoor track for the Pioneers during the winter and won the 500-meter event at the Group AA state meet in March.

"He's a wiry kid," Heritage head coach Keith Scruggs said of the 5-foot-9, 150-pound Grant. "He's strong. He's got some pop in his bat. He's got some tools."

Solbach, a right-handed pitcher from Woodbridge, completed his third year of college eligibility this year. He was injured late in the season, and he felt he didn't get the chance to perform to his potential.

"Not even close," he said. "I want to come back to school and hopefully win a Big South championship."

VMI third baseman Kelly Sweppenhiser was picked in the 44th round (1,318th pick) by the Toronto Blue Jays.

[Hold My Own]

Yikes! I need someone to help me out on this rule.....if you go to a 4 year DIII school do the same rules apply (wait for JR year or 21)? If not then yikes again!

[Hold My Own]

sorry, I didnt read the article....it shouldnt take much recruiting....just walk into his living room and say "We're D1 they are DIII....sign here!"

[Rocketfan]

First, i have no problem saying who i am on this forum, in fact i have already, so posting what ISP i am sending from is just funny( i don't know if i am the only one who can see that or not). Glad you had fun though. You will even have the oppurtunity to see my name in print right next to a Liberty Football preview in the coming months for a new publication.........speaking of that i need to start a thread on that one of these days.

Glad your buddy got the royals job, but that job is no honor....ill go with a challenge however, with the possibility of it someday being an honor. You talked about there being no where to go but up, but i think the royals have been mediocre at best for what 15 years. I hope your boy can turn them around but he has got a lot of work to do to get there. I heard that farm system was in shambles and i think that average age on the opening day roster was like 32 ....yuck.

Glad to hear our boy got drafted, but i think he obviously made the right call in coming back. Weird how i called games for Just, Laurent and others when they were Freshman and now they are moving on, how time flys. I do wonder if we considered this other kid though and how seriously?

[Hold My Own]

My sig only shows my ISP just like it only shows others ISP, it doesnt save the info for me or anything


but just do me a favor....Dave Littlefield will be coming to town very soon, just make it a point to speak to him, he's the nicest guy in the world and would love to talk to you....at least then your hearing it from a guy who's there and doing that...B/c I see you dont believe me when I'm telling you it's an honor, and that's OK, but I dont see why the #1 man in baseball who would get the ATL Braves in less then 5 years would take a job that's not an "Honor"....simply b/c they all are, are some more glamorous sure....but whatever....back on topic

[Chris Lang]

A.G. -- there's a pipeline of sorts from Heritage to LC. There are at least four or five guys from Heritage on the LC team this year, so that doesn't surprise me at all that Grant is going there.

[Hold My Own]

Chris, this really doesnt surprise you? JUCO, yeah...that's not a shocker but if your getting drafted out of HS straight into the pros (Nelly lyric for you fill in the lyric fans, b/c he was drafted in HS) but going to DIII really does hurt his stock after the 3 years is up....he could go to a DI school and have a mediocre career and still get a shot but meanwhile he could go to LC and have exceptional career and still get overlooked or taken in late late rounds again...and it's not like LC is still a national DIII Powerhouse like 5 years ago....they're pretty weak

[A.G.]

Chris, good point about the Heritage-LC connection. However, this fully drives home my point about Royer dismissing the local players. A kid in his own backyard gets drafted, staying in town, and its not LU? Un-freaking-believable. Maybe they will pay a visit to the player and try to get him, now. It is certainly not too late, since there is no NLI in D-III. Heck, it would be fun to steal a player from the secular school on the other side of town