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Thursday, June 15, 2017
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SPORTS
Michigan well-represented in draft
The Michigan baseball team
had 11 players selected in the 2017
MLB Draft, which ran this week
from Monday to Wednesday.
The 11 selections mark the
highest the Wolverines have
seen in program history. The
selections also bring the total
number of Michigan draftees up
to 23 during Erik Bakich’s five-
year tenure as head coach.
Junior
left-hander
Oliver
Jaskie was the first Wolverine off
the board, as the Seattle Mariners
took him in the sixth round
with the 183rd overall pick. The
unquestioned ace of Michigan’s
staff this season, Jaskie finished
the year with an 8-3 record and
3.77 earned-run average in 16
starts, while holding opponents
to a .234 batting average. His
119 strikeouts this year tied a
Wolverine program record as
well.
An All-Big Ten first-team
selection, Jaskie is ranked as
the
147th-best
prospect
by
MLB.com and the fifth-best
college lefthander. His biggest
strengths, according to MLB.
com, are his changeup and
command of his fastball.
Junior third baseman Drew
Lugbauer was the next Michigan
player to be selected, by the
Atlanta Braves in the 11th round.
Lugbauer,
an
all-conference
first-teamer, hit .290 with a
team-leading 11 home runs and
58 runs batted-in. His power to
all fields as well as his versatility
— he has also played catcher
and first base as a Wolverine —
makes him an enticing prospect.
Lugbauer was drafted for the
second time Wednesday — he
was selected in the 21st round by
the Toronto Blue Jays out of high
school, but did not sign.
In
the
16th
round,
the
Cincinnati Reds picked junior
right-hander Ryan Nutof. A hard
thrower with a fastball clocked
at around 95 miles per hour,
Nutof was a key contributer to
Michigan’s pitching staff all
season long, going 6-2 with a
4.52 ERA and 71 strikeouts. He
worked a variety of roles for the
Wolverines this season, making
12 starts and four appearances
out of the bullpen.
Senior
catcher
Harrison
Wenson
returned
to
school
despite being chosen in the 39th
round last year by the Pittsburgh
Pirates, and improved upon that
position this year when the Los
Angeles Angels took him in the
24th round. Despite slumping at
the plate for much of the year —
his average of .191 was a near-100
point drop from his junior season
— Wenson slugged nine home
runs and was rock-solid behind
the plate, as he allowed just nine
passed balls and threw out 47
percent of runners attempting to
steal.
In
the
25th
round,
the
Mariners drafted junior right-
hander Bryan Pall. Pall pitched
just 2.2 innings this season
before he was shut down due
to injury, but recorded a 2.89
ERA and 64 strikeouts his first
two seasons working out of the
bullpen, and was a Freshman
All-American in 2015.
Junior first baseman Jake
Bivens
was
drafted
by
the
Detroit Tigers in the 27th round.
Bivens, the Big Ten Freshman
of the Year in 2015, hit .319 and
.356 his first two seasons as a
Wolverine. Despite his average
falling to .273 this season, Bivens
had an on-base percentage of
.436 and a team-leading 24 stolen
bases. Bivens played all across
the infield his first two seasons,
but featured exclusively at first
base this year due to offseason
Tommy
John
surgery
that
limited his throwing range.
Senior centerfielder Johnny
Slater joined Jaskie and Pall as
the third Mariners selection
in the 28th round. Slater, a top
prospect who was drafted by
the Atlanta Braves out of high
school, broke out in his final
collegiate season as a true “five-
tool” player who can run, throw,
field, hit for average and hit
for power. A career .207 hitter
before this year, Slater hit .299
with five home runs, 47 RBIs,
24 extra-base hits and 15 stolen
bases while committing just one
error in centerfield on his way to
All-Big Ten Third Team honors.
The 28th round saw two
Michigan players drafted, the
second of which was junior left-
hander
Michael
Hendrickson
by the Cleveland Indians. After
throwing just 35.1 innings his
first two seasons, Hendrickson
broke out as a junior and asserted
himself
in
the
Wolverines’
weekend rotation, going 6-3 with
a 4.06 ERA that ranked second
among Michigan starters. He
also held opponents to a mere
.236 batting average.
The Tigers picked redshirt
sophomore
left-hander
Grant
Reuss in the 29th round. Reuss
pitched sparingly last season,
but impressed in that limited
time — he allowed just one hit
and struck out 11 in 6.2 innings.
Senior
right-hander
Mac
Lozer was drafted in the 33rd
round by the New York Mets.
An All-Big Ten Third Team
selection, Lozer was dominant as
the Wolverines’ set-up man this
season, recording a 1.00 ERA
with 37 strikeouts in 27.0 inning
and
a
miniscule
opponents’
batting average of .138.
The final Michigan player
selected was senior shortstop
Michael Brdar, in the 36th round
by the St. Louis Cardinals. Brdar,
the Wolverines’ most consistent
hitter last season, recorded a
.310 batting average and 19 stolen
bases. In the field, he made just
three errors, and displayed a
powerful throwing arm and
terrific range in making several
web-gem caliber defensive stops.
Five high-schoolers who have
committed to play baseball at
Michigan next year were also
drafted this week. Stockton,
Calif., right-hander Cody Bolton
was a sixth-round pick of the
Pirates, and The Record in
Stockton reports that he has
signed a professional contract
and will forego his college
commitment. Jason Pineda, a
first baseman from New York,
was selected by the San Diego
Padres in the 17th round. Catcher
Joe Donovan, from Westmont,
Ill., was the 33rd-round selection
of the Chicago Cubs, while
Portage
Central
right-hander
Jeff Criswell was drafted in
the 35th round by the Tigers.
Left-hander
Angelo
Smith,
from Illinois, marked the final
selection for Michigan commits,
as he was chosen by the Chicago
White Sox in the 40th and final
round.
Eleven players selected in MLB Draft marks a program record
JACOB SHAMES
Summer Managing Sports Editor
Just five years after becoming
the head coach of the Michigan
baseball
team,
Erik
Bakich
has completely changed the
program’s
trajectory,
taking
the Wolverines from a 22-win
team in 2012 to their winningest
season since 2008 last year.
With Bakich’s original five-
year
contract
expiring
this
season, the quick turnaround
he has engineered at one of the
nation’s most storied programs
has tied him to high-profile job
openings around the country,
including the vacancies at South
Carolina and Stanford.
However,
it
appears
that
Bakich is staying put.
D1Baseball.com’s
Kendall
Rogers
first
reported
Wednesday evening via Twitter
that Bakich had turned down
the Cardinal’s offer, and was
committed to remaining the
head coach at Michigan. In a
later tweet, Rogers reported
that Bakich was not a candidate
for the Gamecocks’ vacancy
either.
Bakich appeared to confirm
this
report
himself
with
a
statement posted to his Twitter
account approximately an hour
later.
“Quick note to say thank you
to Michigan, (athletic director)
Warde Manuel, (senior associate
athletic director) Bitsy Ritt, our
coaches, staff, and players for
allowing me to continue to wear
the block ‘M’,” Bakich wrote. “It
is an honor and privilege to serve
as the head baseball coach. We
have so much to be proud of in our
151 year tradition rich program
and the future continues to be
extremely bright. Those who stay
will be champions. Thank you
and Go Blue!”
The Detroit News had reported
earlier this week that Manuel
had offered Bakich a five-year
contract extension to continue as
the Wolverines’ coach.
Bakich coached at Maryland
for three seasons, recording a
record of 70-98, before taking the
job at Michigan. In his five seasons
in Ann Arbor, the Wolverines
have gone 176-119, including a
70-49 record in conference play,
and have qualified for the NCAA
Tournament twice, including an
automatic bid for winning the
Big Ten Conference tournament
in 2015.
BASEBALL
Report: Bakich to
remain at Michigan
JACOB SHAMES
Summer Managing Sports Editor
AARON BAKER/Daily
Erik Bakich will reportedly turn down offers from Stanford and South Carolina to
remain the head coach of the Michigan baseball team.