PERFECT GAME CROSSCHECKER'S DAILY TOP TEN LIST
WEEK 13: 5/7/07 - 5/13/07
 
Friday, May 11, 2007
College seniors will play an important role in this year’s draft, with the strong likelihood that two seniors—Florida first baseman Matt LaPorta and Vanderbilt closer Casey Weathers—will be selected in the first round. Several others will be sprinkled through the early rounds.

Here’s how we see the top 10 seniors in the draft, with the projected round they’ll be selected:
 
Top 10 College Seniors, 2007 Draft
  Player, Pos., School Projected
Round
1. Casey Weathers, rhp, Vanderbilt 1st
2. Matt LaPorta, 1b, Florida 1st
3. *Trystan Magnuson, rhp, Louisville 3rd
4. Clay Mortensen, rhp, Gonzaga 4th
5. *Stephen Clyne, rhp, Clemson 4th
6. Emeel Salem, of, Alabama 5th
7. Nick Hill, lhp, Army 5th
8. Marc Rzepcynski, lhp, UC Riverside 5th
9. Brad Mills, lhp, Arizona 5th
10. *Ryne Tacker, rhp, Rice 6th
*Fifth-year senior; eligible to sign prior to draft
-- Alan Simpson
 
Thursday, May 10, 2007
The Romine brothers, Andrew, a junior shortstop at Arizona State; and Austin, a senior catcher at El Toro High in Lake Forest, Calif., with a college commitment to Arizona State, will both be prominent picks in this year’s draft. Both are expected to be drafted in the top five rounds.

They’ve both got a ways to go, however, to top the accomplishments of their father, Kevin, who was a second-round pick out of Arizona State in 1982 and went on to play seven seasons with the Boston Red Sox from 1985-91. At .408, the elder Romine is also the career batting leader at ASU—a significant feat considering the Sun Devils have had more players drafted through the years than any other school.

Following are the top 10 career batting leaders at ASU, along with the rounds the players were drafted:
 
Top 10 Arizona State Career Batting Leaders
1. *Kevin Romine, of, Red Sox ’82 (2) .408
2. *Hubie Brooks, of, Mets ’78 (1) .396
3. *Willie Bloomquist, ss, Mariners ’99 (3) .394
4. Mike Sodders, 3b, Twins ’81 (1) .389
5. *Dan McKinley, of, Giants ’97 (1) .389
6. *Chris Bando, c, Indians ’78 (2) .388
7. *Dustin Pedroia, ss, Red Sox ’04 (2) .384
8. *Bob Horner, 3b, Braves ’78 (1) .384
9. Casey Myers, c, Athletics ’01 (9) .384
10. Roger Schmuck, 1b, Royals ’71 (#1) .381
* Played in major leagues
#June secondary phase
-- Alan Simpson
 
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
The draft-and-follow process is being phased out with this year’s draft. There are more than 500 players who qualify as draft-and-follows from 2006. The players have until May 31, the beginning of the close period, to sign with the teams that control their rights or they will re-enter this year’s draft. Between 60 and 70 are expected to sign.

Following are the 10 highest unsigned picks from a year ago that are subject to the draft-and-follow rule, along with the junior college they are attending and the major league team that controls their rights. The round the players were drafted in is also noted. The list does not include unsigned first-round pick Max Scherzer, who technically is not a draft-and-follow but remains property of the Diamondbacks until the close period.
 
Top 10 Draft-And Follows, 2006 Draft
1. Joey Rosas, lhp, Yavapai (Ariz.) JC Nationals (9)
2. Jeremy Barfield, of, San Jacinto (Texas) JC Mets (9)
3. Marcus Salmon, c, Miami-Dade CC Nationals (10)
4. Philips Orta, rhp, Western Nebraska CC Mets (10)
5. Kyle Snyder, rhp, Indian River (Fla.) CC Red Sox (10)
6. Matt Latos, rhp, Broward (Fla.) CC Padres (11)
7. Brandon Belt, of-lhp, San Jacinto (Texas) CC Red Sox (11)
8. Chad Robinson, rhp, CC of Southern Nevada Brewers (12)
9. Jordan Walden, rhp, Grayson County (Texas) CC Angels (12)
10. *Sergio Morales, of, Broward (Fla.) CC White Sox (12)
* Already signed
-- Alan Simpson
 
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Roger Clemens, the winningest pitcher in the draft era with 348 victories, will get a chance to build upon his career record when he rejoins the Yankees in several weeks. Clemens, No. 8 on the all-time list, announced Sunday that he has decided to play for the Yankees, ending a brief retirement.

The accompanying list identifies the top 10 winningest pitchers of the draft era, along with the team they were drafted by, the year and round. The number of career wins is noted.
 
Top 10 Winningest Pitchers, Draft Era
  Pitcher, Drafted by/Year (Round) Wins
1. *Roger Clemens, Red Sox ’83 (1) 348
2. *Greg Maddux, Cubs ’84 (2) 333
3. Nolan Ryan, Mets ’65 (10) 324
4. #Tom Seaver, Braves Jan. ’66 (S-1) 311
5. *Tom Glavine, Braves ’84 (2) 290
6. Bert Blyleven, Twins ’69 (3) 287
7. *Randy Johnson, Expos ’85 (2) 280
8. Jack Morris, Tigers ’76 (5) 254
9. Frank Tanana, Angels ’71 (1) 240
10. *Mike Mussina, Orioles ’90 (1) 239
*Still active
#Selection voided; Mets won three-team lottery for rights to sign Seaver
-- Alan Simpson
 
Monday, May 7, 2007
Brown became the first NCAA Division I team to qualify for the 64-team regional field over the weekend, when it beat Penn 1-0 and 20-6 to sweep the best-of-3 Ivy League championship series in two straight games. Regional play is set for June 1-4.

The Bears have won 10 of their last 11 games, but don’t rank among the hottest teams in Division I. That distinction goes to Bethune-Cookman, winners of its last 13 games. The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference also has the somewhat dubious distinction of having the team with the longest losing streak, as well, as Coppin State finished its season with a 0-44 record.

The accompanying list identifies the Division I teams with the longest active winning streaks, through games of Sunday. The only team that is ranked in the top 10 in this week’s PG Crosschecker Top 50 is No. 5 Rice, winners of 10 in a row.
 
Top 10 Longest Winning Streaks, College Baseball
1. Bethune-Cookman 13
2. Iowa 12
3. Rice 10
  Georgia Southern 10
5. Delaware 9
  San Diego 9
7. Rhode Island 8
  Long Beach State 8
  Bradley 8
  Austin Peay State 8
-- Alan Simpson