DENVER Major League Baseball completed its annual First-Year Player draft today and 25 WAC baseball players were picked. There were a total of 50 rounds, and every team in the WAC had at least one player chosen.
Rice led all WAC schools with eight players drafted. San Jose State had six players selected, Fresno State was third with four, Nevada and Louisiana Tech had three and Hawaii had one.
Fresno States Ben Fritz was the first player selected from a WAC school and was picked by Oakland in the first round with the 30th overall pick. Fritz was the WACs Pitcher of the Year in 2002. Nevada pitcher Darrell Rasner was selected in the second round by the Montreal Expos.
Six of the first seven players selected from WAC schools were pitchers. The only position player in that group was San Jose State catcher Adam Shorsher who went to San Diego in the sixth round.
Several first team All-WAC players were drafted as well including: Fritz, Shorsher, San Jose States Gabe Lopez (2B), Rices Hunter Brown (3B), San Jose States Hector Zamora (DH), Rices Steven Herce (P) and Louisiana Techs Derek Brewster (P).
Rd.-Pick, Name, Pos., School, Team
1-30, Ben Fritz, P, Fresno State, Oakland
2-46, Darrell Rasner, P, Nevada, Montreal
6-175, Adam Shorsher, C, San Jose St., San Diego
6-179, Lee Gwaltney, P, La. Tech, Philadelphia
6-184, Mike Hernandez, P, Fresno State, Cleveland
8-234, James Holcomb, P, Nevada, Anaheim
9-262, Steven Herce, P, Rice, Texas
10-296, Eric Arnold, 2B, Rice, Toronto
11-338, Justin Crowder, P, Rice, Oakland
12-345, Donald Gemmell, P, San Jose St., Cincinnati
12-372, Bob Runyon, P, Fresno State, St. Louis
13-375, Enrique Cruz, SS, Rice, Cincinnati
15-456, Philip Tribe, P, Rice, NY Yankees
17-516, Gabe Lopez, 2B, San Jose St., NY Yankees
18-544, Jahseam George, P, San Jose St., Cleveland
21-636, Hector Zamora, 3B, San Jose St., NY Yankees
22-670, Hunter Brown, 3B, Rice, Seattle
25-749, Zach Minor, P, Fresno State, Philadelphia
27-803, Casey Blalock, P, La. Tech, Florida
28-839, Derek Brewster, P, La. Tech, Philadelphia
30-896, A.J. Porfirio, OF, Rice, Toronto
33-989, Jeremy Rogelstad, P, San Jose St., Philadelphia
34-1034, Mike Lorsbach, OF, Rice, Houston
39-1179, Grady Symonds, C, Hawaii, Arizona
39-1182, Jeff Tolotti, OF, Nevada, St. Louis