Baseball draft update: Who's coming, who isn't

Admittedly, the headline is a bit misleading. We can't yet say with complete authority which of the two USF underclassmen and four signees taken in last week's baseball draft will be Bulls next season. We're starting to get a clearer picture, however. We'll address them in the order drafted:

Nick Lockwood, SS, Jesuit, 9th round, Twins: The brother of USF outfielder Ryan Lockwood (more on him in a bit) has a meeting with the Twins this week. His father, Bill, called the draft a "tremendous surprise," one that leaves his son with two great options but one difficult choice to make. "Nothing had prepared us for getting drafted in the top 10 rounds," he said. The presence of freshman Sam Mende entrenched at shortstop for USF won't be an issue -- Lockwood said his son cares much more about being a valuable part of the lineup than playing any specific position.

Shawn Sanford, RHP, USF, 13th round, Giants: We told you last week that the junior was disappointed in his draft position and hoped to play summer ball in an effort to draw a higher offer from the Giants. The pre-draft speculation had him likely to sign a pro contract, but he said he'd consider himself lucky to be able to return to USF for his senior year, so hard to read this one ...

Chad Taylor, SS, Jefferson, 13th round, Cubs: Dragons coach Pop Cuesta said Taylor and his family are still negotiating with the Cubs, and said the next meeting with the team is set for Thursday. "They're learning toward USF unless they come up with more money," Cuesta said.

Chase Greene, OF, West Boca Raton, 16th round, Mets: The Mets had already made an offer last week that exceeded Greene's stated signing-bonus minimum of $150,000, including college tuition, so while we haven't heard of a signing yet, all signs point to one in the near future. Coach Lelo Prado was well aware of this possibility before the draft, so while disappointing, it's not entirely surprising.

Ryan Lockwood, OF, USF, 39th round, Athletics: Lockwood is playing in the Cape Cod League this summer, and batted seventh in the Harwich Mariners lineup in Saturday's season opener, going 0-for-4 with two RBIs. Lockwood is looking to rebound to the form he showed as a freshman All-America, and his father Bill said he expects Ryan to be back with the Bulls this fall. "He's pretty excited about the Bulls coming back next year," he said. "Unless something happens in the Cape or something freakish with the A's, I fully expect Ryan to be coming back for his junior year."

Ray Delphey, RHP, Alonso, 42nd round, Padres: Delphey is recovering from knee surgery and won't be pitching this summer. His father Ray said the Padres called during the draft and "wanted us to come off our number," or lower their signing demands. The family wasn't budging, so Delphey said he was surprised when the Padres still drafted his son. The team hasn't contacted the family yet, and the plan is for Delphey to start summer school at USF at the end of the month. Delphey met with USF coaches last week before the draft to get the please-don't-sign speech, and his father said it worked. "After leaving there, his heart was with USF," he said. "Even if he had been drafted higher, I think he still would be going to school there."

We'll have more updates this week and hope to get an update on senior catcher Trey Manz, who was drafted by the Reds and should be starting his pro career soon ...

Comments

[G.A.]

Otero gave up a run! Nearly posted a blog entry on that news by itself. I'm trying to do minor-league updates once a month, so it's still like a week away. Have to pace myself ...

[David Weber]

I looked up Otero today- it looks like he'll be a big league reliever by next year.

Hopefully USF can convince most of these guys to stick around. A Big East Championship is a distinct possibility next year based on the guys coming back.