Givens happy to be a Cowboy

Some of the top college baseball programs in the country shied away from recruiting Mychal Givens because the Plant senior shortstop/right-handed pitcher projects to be a sure-fire first-round pick in next year’s MLB baseball draft in June.

Still, every year’s baseball draft includes its share of unpredictability. Your fate isn’t decided until your name is called, and even then not completed until a pro contract is signed.

But in the end, Givens accepted on of his first offers, signing with Oklahoma State because they showed resilience and he would be reunited with a pair of old teammates.

Givens said he chose Oklahoma State over Southern Cal, Arizona and North Carolina. Duke also expressed interest. Givens said his top school was Florida, but that the Gators never made him an offer.

“It was hard to think that a lot of schools didn’t want to mess with me because of the draft,” Givens said. “It was a downer and I was kind of upset about it that if I wasn’t in that position I’d be able to go to the No. 1 school I wanted to. But it’s hard to say because you never know where you’re going to end up in the draft.”

Givens said he took an official visit to Oklahoma State a week and a half ago and was convinced that was his best option. It also helped that former Plant players Dylan Brown and Jared Womack are currently playing for the Cowboys.

“They weren’t looking at it as in Mychal Givens is going to be a No. 1 draft pick, but that Mychal Givens can make an improvement as a school,” Givens said Tuesday during a ceremony to celebrate his signing. “They looked at it that I was going to help them get to the College World Series, not as being a prospect.”

Givens is arguably the top high school senior pro prospect in the nation. Over the summer, he won the Jackie Robinson Award, given to the top rising high school senior in the county. He also played in the Aflac All-American Game and the Under Armour All-American Game and emerged from the Perfect Game national showcase in Minneapolis as the top high school prospect.

-- EDUARDO A. ENCINA