Sports stats



NECBL New England Collegiate Baseball League

12 NECBL Alumni Selected in First Five Rounds

June 7, 2012 - New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) News Release


With the eighth pick of the 2012 Major League Draft, the Pittsburgh Pirates selected Mark Appel. Appel, a 6'4" junior right handed pitcher from Stanford, was a First Team All-American and a First Team All-Pac 12 selection. This spring, Appel helped to lead the No. 13 Cardinal to a Super Regional berth while leading the Pac-12 in strikeouts and posting a 2.27 ERA and a 10-1 record.

As a Newport Gull in 2010, the Northern California via Houston product earned selection as the NECBL's Number Top Pro Prospect. Appel yielded a 1.87 ERA, sixth best in the League, in seven starts for Newport. He returned to Cardines Field last summer as a stalwart for Team USA.

"Appel has the complete package of size, stuff and ability to throw strikes. His fastball is a plus pitch now, which sits comfortably in the mid-90s and the scary thing is there might be room for a little bit more as he matures and fills out," proclaimed MLB.com. "The ball explodes out of his hand with a free and easy delivery and his fastball has above-average movement to boot. He's got an outstanding hard slider with late tilt that he can bury down in the strike zone and his circle changeup bottoms out when his mechanics are right. He can throw all three for strikes and gets very high marks for his poise and aggressiveness."

Appel's selection marks the fifth consecutive draft in which an NECBL alumnus was conscripted in the first round. Among the seven first round picks produced in that span, only current Washington National ace Stephen Strasburg was selected higher than Appel. For more on Appel, please visit:

http://www.necbl.com/view/necbl/news/news_49399

The Boston Red Sox added a second former Gull, 6'6" Monmouth RHP Pat Light, with the 37th pick in the supplemental first round. Light was the first college or prep player selected from the Northeast. Boston received the compensatory pick from Philadelphia when the Phillies signed free agent closer Jonathan Papelbon.

"The Monmouth product (has) an ideal pitcher's body. He has the stuff to match the frame, too. Light's fastball sits in the 92-93 mph range, but he can reach back for a 95-96 mph when he needs to," said MLB.com. "If he can improve those secondary offerings, Light has the chance to be an excellent starting pitching prospect. If not, he has the stuff and mentality to succeed in a bullpen as well."

Light went 8-3 with a 2.60 ERA this spring, while setting a Northeast Conference record for strikeouts. Light was named Conference Pitcher of the Week twice this season. He flashed similar brilliance as a teammate of Appel's on the 2010 Newport Gulls. Light's 38 punchouts ranked in the top dozen in the NECBL. He also posted a 2.36 ERA in 42 innings despite pitching in the tight quarters of Cardines Field.

It is the third time in five years that the NECBL has produced two first round draft picks. Ten other NECBL alumni were selected in rounds two through five.

Player/ Pos/NECBL Team/ College/MLB Team/Round/Pick

Branden Kline/RHP/2010 Newport/Virginia/Baltimore/2nd/65th- Kline stuck out 11 in 12.1 innings for Newport. Kline had UVa's best ERA among starters and struck out over a batter per inning this spring.

Jeremy Baltz/OF/2010 Keene/St. John's/San Diego/2nd/68th- Baltz's .301 batting average for Keene ranked in the NECBL's top ten. Baltz was a First Team All-American when he led the nation's freshmen with 24 home runs. For more on Baltz, please visit:

http://www.necbl.com/view/necbl/news/news_48392

Alex Wood/LHP/2010 Keene/Georgia/Atlanta/2nd/85th- Wood had a 3.96 ERA in eight starts for the Swamp Bats. The southpaw went 7-3 with a 2.73 ERA as Georgia's number one starter.

Tom Murphy/C/2011 Holyoke/Buffalo/Colorado/3rd/105th- Baseball America's NECBL Top Pro Prospect, Murphy's nine homers for Holyoke were second best in the NECBL. Murphy was the 2011 MAC Player of the Year.

Joey DeMichele/INF/2010 Keene/Arizona State/Chicago White Sox/3rd/108th- DeMichele hit .267 in 28 starts for the Swamp Bats. DeMichele earned First Team All-Conference honors in both 2011 and 2012. For more on DeMichele, please visit:

http://www.necbl.com/view/necbl/news/news_47361

Kenny Diekroeger/SS/2010 Newport/Stanford/ Kansas City/4th/133rd- The NECBL Rookie of the Year and a First Team All-League pick, Diekroeger hit .324 and drove in 19 runs for Newport. Diekroeger fielded at a .968 clip and made Second Team Academic All-American for Stanford in 2012.

Chris Taylor/SS/2010 Newport/Virginia/Seattle/5th/161st-Taylor hit .364 in three games for the Gulls. He hit .284 for Virginia this spring.

Mike Augliera/RHP/2010 Sanford-2011 Danbury/Binghamton/Boston/5th /181st- Aguliera went 4-2 with a 2.85 ERA in seven starts for the Mainers. He also had a 3.12 ERA in seven appearances for Danbury a year later. Aguliera was a three time all-conference pick who led the nation in strikeout:walk ratio this spring.

Ronnie Freeman/C/2011 Holyoke/Kennesaw St/Arizona/5th/183rd- A First Team All-NECBL pick and the League's Sportsmanship Award winner, Freeman hit .373 with a dozen doubles and 25 RBI. Freeman was selected to both the Atlantic Sun's Baseball and Academic First Teams.

Damien Magnifico/RHP/2011 Laconia/Oklahoma/Milwaukee/5th/185th- Magnifico struck out 18 batters in 18.1 innings with Laconia last summer. This is the second time that Magnifico, a hard throwing redshirt sophomore, has been drafted in the 5th round- he was also selected in the 2009 Draft out of high school.

The NECBL opens it's 19th season on June 7th. This summer is a terrific chance to see baseball's stars of tomorrow play today in New England.



New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from June 7, 2012


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central