Three Mountaineers

selected in draft
By Steve Behr
 
Appalachian State’s baseball class of 2009 has sent three more players into the professional ranks.

Relief pitcher Zach Quate, center fielder Rand Smith and third baseman Isaac Harrow were all selected on the second day of the 2009 Major League Baseball First-Year Draft Wednesday. Quate went to the Tampa Bay Rays in the 14th round, Smith was picked in the 20th round by the Florida Marlins and Harrow was taken in the 24th round by the New York Yankees.

There is still a chance that the Mountaineers could also send starting pitcher Josh Dowdy to the pro ranks.

Mountaineers coach Chris Pollard also has been told that incoming freshmen pitchers Nate Hyatt (Brevard HS) and Tyler Jackson (Starmount) could also be picked.

Quate was taken by the American League champion Rays after posting a record-setting season at Appalachian State. Quate converted on 11-of-11 saves for the Mountaineers, and had he not given up three runs in an inning to UNC Greensboro one game, his ERA would have been 0.49.

Smith was the Mountaineers’ leadoff hitter and set a team record by hitting safely in 27 straight games. He hit safely in 52 of the Mountaineers 54 games this spring and finished with a batting average of .365. He also scored a school record 65 runs.

He admitted to being a little nervous as the draft went on, but was excited when he got the call from the Marlins.

“In the latter rounds, I got a little nervous,” Smith said. “I saw Zach Quate go, then I started texting Isaac. I got the phone call and then I saw my name come up. It was never wracking because you never know what’s going to happen.”

Harrow, a Hickory native, set school records in several categories, including at bats (750), runs (165), hits (260), doubles (65), RBIs (201) and total bases (421) in his college e career.

Harrow said scouts have told him he would likely play second base in the Yankees’ organization, mostly because of his size. He said he’ll have to learn how to play the position since he hasn’t played their since a scrimmage during his sophomore year at Appalachian State.

“They key to my advancement is my hitting,” Harrow said. “That’s the best part of my game. If I can hit, I can play. I’ll also have to work on my defense now because I was drafted as a second baseman, so I’ve got things to learn. I have to listen to those guys and learn all I can to learn the position and play it successfully.”

Last year, as juniors, David Rubinstein, Jason Rook and garret Sherrill were all drafted into professional baseball. Rubinstein was taken in the 11th round by Pittsburgh, while Rook (Baltimore) and Sherrill (Milwaukee) were taken in the 12th round.

The players will likely learn Thursday or Friday, after the draft is over, where they will play this summer. All are likely to be placed on Rookie-league teams.

Being picked was a dream come true for Smith, who said it takes some of the sting out of being eliminated from the Southern Conference Tournament and not making the NCAA Tournament.

“As seniors, we wanted to win that tournament and go to the regional,” Smith said. “Things didn’t happen and we didn’t win the tournament, but three of us got drafted and I’m sure Josh Dowdy will be drafted because he’s a good pitcher. That would be four seniors and seven guys from that class and that’s remarkable.”

“Obviously it proves that we had a great recruiting class with a ton of athletic ability,” Harrow added. “It shows how well coach Pollard did with this recruiting class and we all believed we could do something at Appalachian, even when Appalachian was not at the top. We felt we could turn it around and that we had a chance to play professionally.”

Several Southern Conference players were taken in the draft Wednesday. Elon third baseman Chase Austin was taken in the fifth round by the Florida Marlins and second baseman Nike Liles was taken in the seventh round by the San Francisco Giants. Elon also saw Cory Harrilchak go to the Braves in the 15th round and William Tarlton to the Rockies in the 21st.

Western Carolina also had Corey Smith picked in the 28th round by the Cubs and Brent Greer to the Diamondbacks in the 15th round. Catamounts pitcher Chris Masters went to the Braves in the 11th round.

College of Charleston had second baseman Joseph Bergman go to the Cardinals and center fielder Matthew Mansilla go to the Tigers in the 23rd round. Charleston second baseman Brandon Sizemore was taken in the 30th round to the Brewers. The Citadel’s catcher Richard Jones went to the Cubs in the ninth round, the Bulldogs’ first baseman Chris McGuiness to the Red Sox in the 13th and the Bulldogs’ left-handed pitcher Matt Crim to the Braves in the 22nd.

Georgia Southern’s catcher Griffin Benedict was picked by the Padres in the 16th round, Davidson shortstop Zach Kayne to the White Sox in the 23rd round and Wofford shortstop Michael Gilmartin to the Athletics in the 29th round. UNC Greensboro pitcher Robert Gilliam went to Oakland in the eighth round.

Two players that faced Watauga this spring were also taken in the draft. Jamestown Ragsdale pitcher Nick McBride went in the fifth round to the Texas Rangers and third-baseman Richard Shaffer from Providence High went to the Dodgers in the 25th round. Ethan Icard, formally of East Burke High and currently of Wilkes Community College went to the Braves in the 25th.