June 9, 2010
ATLANTA – A school-record tying 10 Georgia Tech players, along with nine signees, were selected in the 2010 Major League Baseball First-Year player draft which took place Monday through Wednesday. The Yellow Jacket 10 draftees led an Atlantic Coast Conference record 64 selections.
The 64 conference selections broke the previous ACC mark of 63 set in 2007. This marks the fifth straight year at least 50 ACC players have been chosen in the June draft.
Georgia Tech led all ACC schools and tied a school record with a total of 10 players selected in the 50-round draft, matching the team’s total from the 2004 and 2007 seasons. The 10 players were drafted by nine different organizations.
Junior pitcher Deck McGuire was selected by the Toronto Blue Jays in the first round Monday, with the 11th overall pick of the draft.
McGuire became just the second Georgia Tech pitcher to ever to be selected in the first round, joining Kevin Brown who was picked eighth overall by the Texas Rangers in 1986. He is the school’s ninth overall first-round selection.
Tech’s No. 1 starter on the mound ended his junior season with a 9-4 record, holding a 2.96 ERA with 118 strikeouts. McGuire led the ACC in strikeouts and innings pitched (112.2), while finishing second in ERA.
The Richmond, Va. native holds a 28-7 career record, having struck out 306 batters in 291.0 innings – the 28 wins tie for the fourth most all-time at Georgia Tech, while the strikeouts place him fifth all-time in the Tech record books. He has earned All-America accolades all three years on the Flats, and was named the Atlantic Coast Conference Pitcher of the Year in 2009.
Juniors Derek Dietrich, Cole Leonida and Brandon Cumpton, seniors Tony Plagman and Andrew Robinson, and juniors Thomas Nichols, Chase Burnette, Kevin Jacob and Jeff Rowland were all drafted on the second day of the 2010 draft in listed order.
Shortstop Dietrich was the first Jacket drafted on day two, as the Tampa Bay Rays drafted him in the second round with the 79th overall pick. The Parma, Ohio native concluded his junior season hitting a .350 clip, with 17 home runs and 66 RBI. He earned All-ACC honors for the third time in his career after being named to the team in 2010.
He joined McGuire to give the Jackets two top-100 picks.
Junior catcher Cole Leonida was selected by the Washington Nationals four rounds later, with the 176th overall pick (6th round). Leonida batted .296 with 11 home runs and 56 RBI in his first season as the full-time catcher for the Jackets.
A pair of Tech players went in the ninth round, as the Pittsburgh Pirates selected junior pitcher Brandon Cumpton at pick No. 267, and the Detroit Tigers drafted senior Tony Plagman at 283.
Cumpton posted a 9-3 record with a 5.50 ERA in his third season on the Flats, recording 53 strikeouts in 73 2/3 innings. He is Tech’s second weekend starter taken in the 2010 draft.
Plagman ended his senior season with a team-high 21 home runs and 78 RBI, while hitting .360 on the year. He is one of just 12 players in school history to eclipse the 20 home run mark in a single season, and concludes his career ranked among Tech’s career top-10 in hits (7th, 287), runs scored (7th, 213), doubles (7th, 56), home runs (3rd, 55), RBI (219, 6th) and total bases (2nd, 513). He was named third-team All-America by Louisville Slugger, and a first-team All-ACC honoree in 2010.
Andrew Robinson was drafted in the 12th round (363) by the Houston Astros. The right-handed pitcher had an outstanding final season at Tech as the team’s closer, going a perfect 8-for-8 in save opportunities, while posting a 4-0 record and a 2.43 ERA. Robinson had 25 strikeouts in 33 1/3 innings.
The Los Angeles Angels took Thomas Nichols in the 18th round (No. 504). Nichols, a 2010 second-team All-ACC honoree, led the team in batting with a .376 average while belting 10 home runs and 41 RBI as the designated hitter.
The Cleveland Indians drafted Chase Burnette in the same round at No. 540. Burnette batted .356 with 17 home runs and 66 RBI during his junior year. The New York Yankees selected Kevin Jacob at pick No. 565 later in the same round. The junior right-hander missed most of the season with shoulder tendinitis, but recorded 13 strikeouts in 10 1/3 innings of relief. He made two saves on the year and held a 5.23 ERA.
Jeff Rowland became the second Yellow Jacket selected on the day by the Detroit Tigers, as he went in the 19th round at pick No. 583. Rowland led the team in runs scored (75) and triples (7), while batting .322 with 10 home runs and 42 RBI.
McGuire, Dietrich, Leonida, Cumpton, Nichols, Burnette, Jacob and Rowland all maintain a season of eligibility.
Nine Tech signees were also taken in the draft, highlighted by first-round picks Jake Skole (Woodstock, Ga.) and Chevez Clarke (Marietta, Ga.). Skole went 15th overall to the Texas Rangers, and Clarke 30th overall to the Los Angeles Angels.
Notes:
* At least one Georgia Tech player has been selected in the MLB Draft every year since 1980. Since 1965, there has only been seven seasons (1970-72, 75-76, 78, 80) that no Tech player has been selected in the draft.
* 144 different Georgia Tech players have been selected in the MLB draft, 103 of which have come during Hall’s tenure.
* There have been a total of 167 draft selections in Georgia Tech history.
* A total of 58 players that were drafted out of high school have chosen to attend Georgia Tech, 37 of which have played for Hall (including Dietrich).
* The 64 conference selections broke the previous ACC mark of 63 set in 2007. This marks the fifth straight year at least 50 ACC players have been chosen in the June draft.
* This marked the ninth time in 10 years the ACC has boasted multiple first-round selections
Georgia Tech players in the 2010 MLB draft
Rd. (Pick), Name, Pos., Team
1 (11) Deck McGuire, Jr., RHP, Toronto Blue Jays
2 (79) Derek Dietrich, Jr., SS, Tampa Bay Rays
6 (176) Cole Leonida, Jr. C, Washington Nationals
9 (267) Brandon Cumpton, Jr., RHP, Pittsburgh Pirates
9 (293) Tony Plagman, Sr., 1B, Detroit Tigers
12 (363) Andrew Robinson, Sr. RHP, Houston Astros
18 (504) Thomas Nichols, Jr., 3B/DH, LA Angels
18 (540) Chase Burnette, Jr., OF, Cleveland Indians
18 (565) Kevin Jacob, Jr., RHP, New York Yankees
19 (583) Jeff Rowland, Jr., OF, Detroit Tigers
Georgia Tech Signees in the 2010 MLB Draft
Rd. (Pick), Name, Pos., Team
1 (15) Jake Skole, OF*, Texas Rangers
1 (30) Chevez Clarke, OF, Los Angeles Angels
4 (128) Matthew Grimes, RHP, Chicago White Sox
8 (240) Alexander Lavisky, C, Cleveland Indians
14 (435) DeAndre Smelter, RHP, Minnesota Twins
19 (591) Daniel Palka, 1B, Philadelphia Phillies
44 (1326) Daniel Hyde, 2B, Toronto Blue Jays
47 (1423) Christopher Triplett, SS, Detroit Tigers
50 (1497) Dusty Isaacs, RHP, Pittsburgh Pirates
*- Signed NLI with Football at Georgia Tech
