Scouts weren't in short supply when the Ball State University baseball team played this season and many came to see junior center fielder Jeremy Hazelbaker play.
This week the efforts by the scouting departments of MLB teams will come to fruition with the First-Year Player Draft, held Tuesday-Thursday. Hazelbaker is expected to be selected in the first five rounds of the draft, becoming the 46th player drafted from Ball State.
Hazelbaker shot up draft boards with a remarkable 2009 season, batting .429 and setting multiple school records. He impressed with his speed and base running ability and could be the highest picked Cardinal since 2003, when outfielder Brad Snyder was selected with the 18th pick of the draft by the Cleveland Indians.
Coach Greg Beals said Hazelbaker and Snyder are different players, but have drawn similar interest from big league teams.
"Brad had more power and he was a bigger guy," Beals said. "Jeremy's bat is good, but his speed is his thing. They're very comparable as far as being Major League prospects."
Because of the way the baseball draft is structured, Hazelbaker does not have to declare himself eligible for the draft and has not hired an agent, unlike NFL and NBA prospects. This leaves open the possibility the All-Mid-American Conference center fielder will not sign with the club who drafts him, but Beals said he is sure he won't have the chance to coach Hazelbaker again.
"I'm about 100 percent sure he won't be coming back," Beals said. "It's a great opportunity for him to realize a dream."
Hazelbaker is being advised about the draft process by Joe Bick. He is the agent of current major leaguers Kevin Youklis and Nick Swisher. Bick thinks Hazelbaker will be pleased with the draft results.
"I'm confident a number of Major League clubs see Jeremy's abilities in a very positive light," Bick said. "I'm confident come draft day he'll be a very happy boy."
This year's draft is seen by many clubs as being very pitching heavy, led by Stephen Strasburg of San Diego State University, who the Washington Nationals will select with the first pick. "This year's draft seems like its pretty pitching heavy," said Bud Grant, Cleveland Indians Director of Amateur Scouting. "We think there's good depth to the pitching side of it."
Bick sees that as a positive for Hazelbaker.
"I don't think there's an abundance of outstanding college position players," Bick said. "That should work in his favor."
Hazelbaker may not be the only Cardinal taken during the draft. Beals said there has been some interest in junior catcher Zach Dygert and senior pitcher Brenden Stines. Dygert may be drafted somewhere between rounds 20-25 and Stines near the end of the draft, which lasts 50 rounds.
"There's a slim chance with Stines," Beals said. "He may be a post-draft free agent deal."
The MAC is also expected to have good draft results. Ohio University junior Marc Krauss is anticipated to be selected in the first round and Kent State University has a few pitchers that have drawn lots of interest from scouts.
"It looks like Kent State is one of the stronger programs in Ohio," Grant said.
This will be the 14th consecutive year a Ball State player has been drafted. Beals said Ball Diamond has become a place where scouts come every year.
"There's no question about it, Ball State is definitely on the map," Beals said. "The scouts know we do a good job recruiting talented ball players and do a good job preparing guys."
MLB First-Year Player Draft
- First three rounds at 6 p.m. Tuesday.
- Round 4-30 at noon Wednesday.
- Round 31-50 at 11:30 a.m. Thursday.
- First round shown on MLB Network
- Rounds 2-50 streamed live on MLB.com
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