June 7, 2004
ATLANTA – Georgia Tech outfielders Brandon Boggs, Clifton Remole and Jeremy Slayden, pitcher Andrew Kown, catcher Mike Nickeas and second baseman Eric Patterson were selected on the first day of the 2004 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft on Monday. Four more Yellow Jackets — pitchers Micah Owings, Brian Burks, Nick Wagner and Aaron Walker — were selected on day two of the draft.
The 10 Tech players selected eclipsed the previous school record of nine players drafted in 2001 and tied the ACC record set by Florida State in 1995.
Boggs was a fourth round selection of the Texas Rangers. The switch-hitting junior earned first team All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors in 2004. A 50th round draft pick out of high school, Boggs is hitting .329 with nine home runs, 58 RBI and 11 stolen bases this spring.
A fifth round selection of the Detroit Tigers, Kown is 10-1 with a 3.49 ERA in 2004 and earned second-team All-ACC honors. Undrafted out of high school, the 6’7″ right-hander has worked 105.2 innings and struck out 94.
Nickeas, a fifth round draft choice of the Texas Rangers, is hitting .275 with seven home runs in his second year as Tech’s starting catcher. The junior was undrafted out of high school.
Patterson was selected in the eighth round by the Chicago Cubs, the same organization that his older brother, Cory, plays center field for at the major league level. A three-time first-team All-ACC selection, Patterson is batting .326 with eight home runs and ranks among the national leaders with 47 stolen bases.
Remole was a 11th round selection of the Anaheim Angels after being undrafted out of high school. The junior earned second-team All-ACC honors in 2004, and he is batting .353 with four home runs and 56 RBI.
Slayden was selected in the 18th round by the Oakland Athletics despite sitting out all but nine games during the 2004 season after undergoing shoulder surgery in March. The junior is eligible for a medical redshirt.
Four Tech pitchers were taken on day two of the draft. Owings was selected in the 19th round by the Chicago Cubs, Burks was drafted in the 25th round by the San Diego Padres, Wagner was taken in the 28th round by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, and Walker was a 30th round selection of the Devil Rays.
Georgia Tech Players in the DraftPlayer Class Pos. Round TeamBrandon Boggs Jr. OF 4th Texas RangersAndrew Kown Jr. RHP 5th Detroit TigersMike Nickeas Jr. C 5th Texas RangersEric Patterson Jr. 2B 8th Chicago CubsClifton Remole Jr. OF/1B 11th Anaheim AngelsJeremy Slayden Jr. OF 18th Oakland AthleticsMicah Owings So. P 19th Chicago CubsBrian Burks Sr. P 25th San Diego PadresNick Wagner Jr. P 28th Tampa Bay Devil RaysAaron Walker Sr. P 30th Tampa Bay Devil Rays
