MLB AMATEUR DRAFT : Stegall: Miami is likely out, NY in
Posted on Wednesday, June 7, 2006
Forget football.
Daniel Stegall of Greenwood was committed to playing quarterback for the University of Miami, but that was before the New York Mets made him a seventh-round pick (214 th overall ) Tuesday in the 2006 Major League Baseball Draft.
The chance to play for pay is a more palatable option for the 6-2, 180-pound outfielder. Stegall wants to talk to the Miami coaching staff before making a final decision, but he said he's leaning toward signing a professional baseball contract.
"I haven't talked to [Miami ] yet,"Stegall said," but if the bonus is what I expect it to be, I'm going."
A contract tendered to a drafted player doesn't become official until it is reviewed by Major League Baseball, and Stegall wouldn't disclose how much he stands to get from the Mets, but he said the amount was on par with what a seventhround pick would typically receive. He said the offer also would involve money to continue his education.
"It feels really good,"Stegall said. "I was just happy to have a chance to get drafted."
Stegall's selection was the high point of a lukewarm draft day for the state. He was the first player selected from the state, and the only one who doesn't play for the Arkansas Razorbacks taken on Day 1.
The Razorbacks had three players, including two juniors, selected Tuesday.
Junior first baseman Danny Hamblin, the team's home run and RBI leader this past season, went to the Oakland A's in the ninth round (278 overall ), and junior third baseman Blake Parker of Fayetteville was taken as a catcher by the Chicago Cubs in the 16 th round (479 overall ). The Texas Rangers took Razorbacks senior center fielder Craig Gentry of Van Buren in the 10 th round (298 overall ).
Five Razorbacks recruits for the 2007 season also were taken.
Left-handed pitcher Tony Butler of Oak Creek, Wis., was chosen by Seattle in the third round (82 overall ). Shortstop Tyler Henson of Tuttle, Okla., went in the fifth round (145 overall ) to the Baltimore Orioles, and Navarro Community College first baseman Chris Davis was taken three spots later by the Texas Rangers.
Right-handed pitcher R. J. Seidel of LaCrosse, Wis., was selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 16 th round (482 overall ), and infielder Ty Weeden of Edmond, Okla., was taken later in the round (493 overall ) by the Boston Red Sox.
Stegall batted. 500 this past season while leading Greenwood to a Class AAAA state title, but his interest in football kept his name from being floated as a high-round pick.
Things began to change after Stegall's senior season. At a Mets-sponsored tryout at Arkansas-Fort Smith's Crowder Field, Stegall took batting practice with a wood bat and displayed his arm while executing throws from the outfield. That was enough for Mets scout Larry Chase, who will get credit for signing him should Stegall walk away from Miami.
"You look at him, he's going to fill out,"said Craig Jones, who coached Stegall in high school. "When you get to looking at him, he's one of those guys that can become a five-tool guy."
Hamblin hit. 289 with 17 home runs and 68 RBI this past season, but his run production dried up late in the season and he led the team with 62 strikeouts. It's uncertain whether he will return to Arkansas for his senior season.
"I think he really enjoys college baseball and being at Arkansas,"Razorbacks Coach Dave Van Horn said. "The ninth round I know approximately what the money is, but if it's not enough for him, he'll come back."
Parker batted. 246 this season with 6 home runs and 28 RBI and is expected to move on to the pro ranks. Gentry batted. 326 with 3 home runs and 23 RBI as a senior. He led Arkansas with 16 stolen bases and was a standout defensively.
Butler, 6-7, impressed scouts late in the spring when his fastball was regularly clocked in the 89-92 mph range and topped out at 95. He said Tuesday he wasn't sure if he'd sign for an expected bonus in the $ 500, 000 range.
"If I was picked in the first or second round, it'd be a no-brainer,"Butler said. "If I went in the fourth or fifth round, I'd be a Razorback.
Henson is believed to be leaning toward turning pro after going in the fifth round to the Orioles.
Seidel, 6-6, was expected to be taken by perhaps the fifth round, but he and Weeden lasted into the 16 th. Bonus demands likely dropped both. Information for this article was contributed by Chris Cocoles and Rick Fires of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
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