- Thread starter
- #1
Top draft pick clinched amid win
Tuesday, 28 September 2010 23:15 Written by Dejan Kovacevic
ST. LOUIS -- Strange scene for the Pirates.
Garrett Jones’ home run and three RBIs, Brian Burres’ solid start and John Bowker’s timely pinch-hit double pushed them past the St. Louis Cardinals, 7-2, Tuesday night at Busch Stadium. That ended the latest road losing streak at a relatively modest five games.
At roughly the same time, a few states to the south, the Seattle Mariners beat the Texas Rangers, 3-1, to clinch that the Pirates will have the No. 1 overall pick in the draft next summer. The Pirates are 56-101, the Mariners 61-96, so they still can tie for worst record in Major League Baseball, but the tiebreaker is the previous season’s standings, and only the Washington Nationals finished below the Pirates in 2009.
It will be the first time the Pirates have picked first overall since 2002, when they took pitcher Bryan Bullington. The consensus top talent in the coming class is Rice University third baseman Anthony Rendon.
So, there’s that.
“Really, we look forward to the day we start picking 28th and 30th,” general manager Neal Huntington said just outside the clubhouse. “We’ve had two No. 2s already and, in our minds, it’s no different except that we’re able to pick out the guy we want a little earlier than usual. We’ve got to get the right pick, whether it’s that round or the 32nd round.”
The Pirates’ No. 2 overall picks have been third baseman Pedro Alvarez and, this past June, pitcher Jameson Taillon.
Rendon, 20, will be a senior at Rice next year, and scouts will monitor closely how well he recovers from a major ankle injury July 14 that required surgery.
Huntington, as always, steered clear of discussing specifics of the draft.
“I’ll be able to give a lot more information about who we take No. 1 in the country after we take him,” he said. “There’s a good list of guys available, some college arms, and there could be some college bats. Prior to the injury, Rendon’s a very interesting player. We’ve got to see where he is post-injury.”
Tuesday, 28 September 2010 23:15 Written by Dejan Kovacevic
ST. LOUIS -- Strange scene for the Pirates.
Garrett Jones’ home run and three RBIs, Brian Burres’ solid start and John Bowker’s timely pinch-hit double pushed them past the St. Louis Cardinals, 7-2, Tuesday night at Busch Stadium. That ended the latest road losing streak at a relatively modest five games.
At roughly the same time, a few states to the south, the Seattle Mariners beat the Texas Rangers, 3-1, to clinch that the Pirates will have the No. 1 overall pick in the draft next summer. The Pirates are 56-101, the Mariners 61-96, so they still can tie for worst record in Major League Baseball, but the tiebreaker is the previous season’s standings, and only the Washington Nationals finished below the Pirates in 2009.
It will be the first time the Pirates have picked first overall since 2002, when they took pitcher Bryan Bullington. The consensus top talent in the coming class is Rice University third baseman Anthony Rendon.
So, there’s that.
“Really, we look forward to the day we start picking 28th and 30th,” general manager Neal Huntington said just outside the clubhouse. “We’ve had two No. 2s already and, in our minds, it’s no different except that we’re able to pick out the guy we want a little earlier than usual. We’ve got to get the right pick, whether it’s that round or the 32nd round.”
The Pirates’ No. 2 overall picks have been third baseman Pedro Alvarez and, this past June, pitcher Jameson Taillon.
Rendon, 20, will be a senior at Rice next year, and scouts will monitor closely how well he recovers from a major ankle injury July 14 that required surgery.
Huntington, as always, steered clear of discussing specifics of the draft.
“I’ll be able to give a lot more information about who we take No. 1 in the country after we take him,” he said. “There’s a good list of guys available, some college arms, and there could be some college bats. Prior to the injury, Rendon’s a very interesting player. We’ve got to see where he is post-injury.”
