8 with S. Jersey Ties Selected in Draft

Eight with South Jersey Ties Selected in MLB Draft

Major League Baseball just conducted its first-year player draft and Cape Atlantic League alumni and products of Bishop Eustace and Sterling comprised the list. There were eight players with South Jersey roots who were selected in the draft. All four players from the Cape Atlantic League were college players. Eustace and Sterling each had one former player and one current one selected.

Here is the list: Player; Position; Team; Round/Selection; Team

Brett Kennedy Jr.; RHP; Fordham (Atlantic City H.S.); 11/327; San Diego Padres

Cody Stashak Jr.; RHP; St. John’s (Oakcrest); 13/380; Minnesota Twins

Tyler Phillips; RHP; Bishop Eustace; 16/468; Texas Rangers

Greg Brodzinski Sr.; C; Barry University (Bishop Eustace); 18/534; Phillies

Aaron Cox Jr.; RHP; Gannon U (Millville); 19/585; Los Angeles Angels

Kevin Walsh Sr.; RHP; Arkansas Pine-Bluff (Sterling); 21/624; Phillies

Ed Charlton Sr.; OF; (NJIT/St. Augustine); 23/685; Cincinnati Reds

Andrew Miller (pictured); LHP; Sterling; 34/1023; NY Yankees The two high school players were Bishop Eustace’s Phillips and Sterling’s Miller, both hard-throwing pitchers.

It wasn’t surprising that Phillips was selected by the Rangers. The week before the draft he went to Texas to work out for Rangers officials. Phillips had a dominating senior season for the Crusaders, who won the Joe Hartmann Diamond Classic and were the consensus No. 1 team in South Jersey.

As a senior, Phillips was 9-0 with a 1.02 ERA. He has made a commitment to Manatee Community College in Bradenton, Florida, but it would surprise nobody if he signed with Texas.

Miller was 5-3 with a 1.60 ERA for Sterling and his final game was a 1-0 loss to eventual South Jersey Group 2 champion Buena in the tournament. In that game, the hard-throwing Miller struck out 12.

He has made a commitment to the University of Maryland and that likely will be his destination.

Professional teams can sign a high school player up until the July 17 deadline. If a high school player attends a junior college, he is eligible to be drafted again after his freshman season. If he attends a four-year school, then he must wait until his junior season to be drafted.

The highest drafted player from South Jersey was Fordham’s Brett Kennedy, a former Atlantic City standout, who was selected in the 11th round, 327th overall.

In 16 appearances, including 15 starts this spring, Kennedy was 6-8 with a 4.14 ERA. In 87 innings he struck out 97 and walked 20. A player who strikes out more than one batter an inning, will usually attract the eye of scouts. In addition, Kennedy was 5-3 with a 3.51 ERA with 55 strikeouts in 51 1/3 Atlantic 10 innings.

The Cape Atlantic League doesn’t always receive the most baseball publicity, but it is the league where baseball’s best player Mike Trout (Millville) competed and last year pitcher Joey Gatto of St. Augustine was selected in the second round and signed with the Los Angeles Angels.

This year’s draft was another example of the talent that the Cape continues to produce.

Photo (Marc Narducci: Sterling's Andrew Miller)

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Author: Marc Narducci; photo by Marc Narducci