Maybe it’s time that LSU baseball fans look at Mainieri
June 11, 2014
Stubbs focused on 2014 as season draws near
June 11, 2014
The LSU baseball team is out of the NCAA Tournament – the Tigers will not be making the trip to Omaha to chase their seventh College World Series title in 23 years.
But even with the early postseason exit, several of the team’s players got the call of a lifetime this week and were selected in the 2014 MLB Draft.
Five LSU players were picked in the draft, which spans over three days and 40 rounds. As expected, the gem of the Tigers’ draft class was pitcher Aaron Nola, who was taken with the No. 7 overall pick in the first round by the Philadelphia Phillies.
Utility player Tyler Moore (sixth round, New York Mets), pitchers Joe Broussard (15th round, Los Angeles Dodgers) and Nate Fury (36th round, Detroit Tigers) and outfielder Sean McMullen (30th round, Houston Astros) were also picked in the draft.
“It was such a privilege to coach Aaron Nola,” said LSU baseball coach Paul Mainieri. “He is as fine of a pitcher that I’ve coached in my 32 years. He was everything you wanted in a pitcher. You gave him the ball and he goes out and competes as heard as he can every night.”
With the MLB Draft out of the way, the question quickly becomes which of the draftees will sign professional contracts and which will return to LSU?
For Fury and McMullen, no decision is needed, as the players are seniors and will promptly sign with the Tigers and Astros, respectively, to begin their pro careers.
But for Nola, Broussard and Moore, it’s now negotiating time as the professional teams will make contract proposals in the coming weeks to try and woo the players into beginning their professional careers.
Just to keep facts straight, Nola is lumped in with the underclassmen, because he technically has another year of college baseball available to him if he chose to return to school.
But barring a significant turn of events, Nola’s decision has already been made, and he will sign a multi-million dollar deal with the Phillies.
In Mainieri’s comments above, he mentioned Nola’s LSU career in the past-tense, which tells fans everything they need to know regarding whether the pitcher intends to sign with the Phillies.
Nola took it a step deeper on the night of the draft, referring to himself as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies’ organization.
“My heart has never beaten so fast in my life,” Nola said just minutes after being selected. “I’m glad everything has been lifted off my shoulders, and I’m excited to go wherever they send me. It means so much to be a part of the Philadelphia Phillies’ organization. They have such a great history.”
But while Nola has a multi-million dollar contract about to come his way, Moore and Broussard have a much more difficult decision to make when it pertains to their futures.
Moore was a utility player for the Tigers this past year, spending time at catcher, first baseman and as LSU’s DH.
The Tigers’ junior hit .301 with 6 home runs and 37 RBI for the team in 2014. Those numbers may not look like those of a sixth round pick, but his overall stats are probably a bit deceiving. That’s because Moore was playing his best baseball in the final weeks of the season, hitting .378 in LSU’s final 12 games, including 4 home runs and 22 RBI.
The Baton Rouge native was the MVP of the 2014 SEC Tournament and is considered by most to be a lock to sign with the Mets for a contract offer that has been reported as coming with signing bonus close to $300,000.
For Broussard, things get a little bit more interesting. Prior to this week’s draft, Mainieri said publicly that there was little-to-no chance that the closer would return to school, because he was projected before the draft to be selected in the top 6-7 rounds of the draft.
But after slipping to the 15th round, Mainieri changed his stance and told Baton Rouge reporters that the closer is now a 50-50 bet to sign professionally or return to LSU.
If Broussard returns, it would be a huge boost to LSU’s 2015 club, as the Gretna native was one of the best relief pitchers in the SEC this season. Broussard struck out 37 hitters in 34 and one-third innings, posting eight saves with a 1.05 ERA.
The deadline for Broussard (and all other drafted players) to sign their contract is 10:59 p.m. on Aug. 15. If a player goes unsigned past the deadline, he will return to his college where he would be eligible for the next season’s draft.
In addition to the current college players, pro teams also select top high school talent in the draft, a cause of nervousness among Mainieri and other college coaches around the country who are left to wonder whether their signees will ever enroll in the program.
But for LSU in 2014, things appear bright, as Mainieri said that he thinks as many as 11 of the team’s 12 signees will enroll and play three seasons in purple and gold.
If that statement holds, the 2014 class could be one of the best in Mainieri’s tenure, as most consider it to be among the top in America.
Colonels’ lefty picked in 7th round of MLB Draft
While the best pitcher in the SEC celebrates and readies himself for rookie ball, the best pitcher in the Southland Conference is getting set to become a member of the Seattle Mariners organization.
Nicholls State University senior lefty Taylor Byrd was taken by the Mariners in the seventh round of the draft. His selection marks the second time in four years that a Colonels’ player is picked in the Top 10 rounds of the MLB Draft. Byrd is now the third-highest Nicholls player to be drafted to the MLB, trailing behind former first round pick Scott Sanders and Brad Delatte, a former 5th round pick.
“I am very excited and feel blessed to have been drafted by a club like the Mariniers,” Byrd said following the draft. “It’s always been a dream to play in the MLB, and I feel like my time at Nicholls was invaluable to my success in achieving this dream. My teammates and coaches really prepared me for playing at the next level.”
It’s easy to see why Byrd was so quick to go off the board.
The lefty posted an 8-3 record in 2014 with a 1.92 ERA and 80 strikeouts. Twenty-four of his strikeouts caught opposing hitters looking.
Byrd was the unquestioned ace of a Colonels’ staff that powered the team into the Southland Conference Tournament as the No. 2 seed. But he wasn’t able to pitch in the tournament after being declared academically ineligible.
That issue apparently was no factor to the Mariners, who are now heavily investing in the left-hander’s future for the next several seasons.
“I’m very happy for Taylor and his family,” Colonels coach Seth Thibodeaux said. “He has worked really hard for this opportunity. Taylor is a great person and will make the most of this.”
LSU junior baseball pitcher Aaron Nola fires a pitch during LSU’s victory against Yale this season. The dominant right-handed ace was rewarded for his dominance this week by being the No. 7 overall pick in the 2014 MLB Draft. He was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies. Nola is widely expected to sign his professional contract and begin his minor league career.
