Ravens Ready for 2007 MLB First Year Player Draft
Baseball America lists five Franklin Pierce players in Upper New England Top 10
RINDGE, N.H. (June 6, 2007) - Several Franklin Pierce baseball players will be huddled around computers over the next two days in hopes of hearing their names selected in the 2007 Major League Baseball First Year Player Draft which begins on Thursday (2 p.m.) with first round coverage aired on ESPN2 for the first time. The draft will continue with up to 50 rounds through Friday.
Franklin Pierce players make up half of Baseball America's Upper New England (New Hampshire, Maine & Vermont) region draft top ten. Head Coach Jayson King has seen 11 Ravens selected in the MLB Draft since 2001, a total topped only by Boston College (17) in New England collegiate circles in that time, including a program record five in 2006. 16 Ravens in all have gone on to enjoy professional careers since 2001.
"Franklin Pierce Head Coach Jayson King is one of the most respected coaches in the Northeast," stated Baseball America writer Aaron Fitt in the draft preview. "Scouts rave about his ability to recruit and develop talent."
Junior All-American and Northeast-10 Conference Player of the Year Keith Renaud (Southbridge, Mass./Southbridge) is BBA's top prospect for Upper New England and the publication projects him as a potential 8-10th round pick. Projected as a pitcher for professional baseball, Renaud possesses a 90-93 mile per hour fastball and plus slider to go with a curveball and changeup.
Renaud, the ABCA/Rawlings and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Northeast Region Player of the Year, posted a 6-3 record and 3.00 earned run average in 12 starts in his first season with Franklin Pierce after transferring from Becker College. He struck out a Conference-leading 91 batters and walked 30 over 69.0 innings, holding opposing batters to a .195 average.
Renaud was also one of the Ravens top hitters, posting a .352 batting average (81-for-230) with 59 runs scored, ten doubles, a triple, six home runs and 39 RBI to go with 20 stolen bases on 26 attempts. Renaud earned All-Tournament team honors at the NCAA Division II Northeast Regional and was a three-time NE-10 Player of the Week, earning Conference Pitcher of the Week honors twice.
Senior right-hander Steve Shepard (Peterborough, N.H./Conval) is ranked 2nd in the region by Baseball America. The six-foot, four-inch, right-hander has incredible stuff, boasting a fastball that touches 96-mph, a low-80's slider. Shepard made six appearances (five starts) for the Ravens this spring, posting a 3-1 record and 8.35 ERA with 17 strikeouts and 18 walks over 18.1 innings with opposing batters hitting .213 against him.
Sophomore-eligible infielder Scott Savastano (Plymouth, Mass./Plymouth North) is rated fifth by BBA, though the publication projects him as a top-five round prospect in 2008 should he opt to return for his junior year. Savastano missed 41 of Franklin Pierce's 60 games due to injury this season after the 2006 NE-10 Freshman of the Year led the Ravens with a .397 batting average his freshman year. A 33rd-round draft pick of the Chicago White Sox out of high school in 2005, Savastano hit .357 (25-70) with 11 runs scored, three doubles, a triple, home run and 14 RBI in just 19 games played this spring. He earned All-Tournament team honors at the Northeast Regional for the second-straight season.
Junior catcher Matt Anderson (Medford, Mass./Medford) is ranked sixth and could go in the top 20 rounds in a "catcher starved" draft according to Baseball America. The All-Northeast Region backstop had a breakthrough year offensively for Franklin Pierce this season, hitting .329 (68-207) with 42 runs scored, 15 doubles, a triple, eight home runs and 49 RBI. Anderson also threw out 17-of-the-69 (24.6-percent) base stealers against him this season with 12 passed balls in 57 games played.
Senior centerfielder Vinny Pennell (Spencer, Mass./David Prouty) rounds of the Ravens contingent that makes up five of the top seven ranked prospects in Upper New England by Baseball America at No. 7. Pennell, a four-time All-Northeast-10 selection and two-time All-Region pick, is both Franklin Pierce's career leader in hits (249) and stolen bases (95). He produced another outstanding season for the Ravens this spring, hitting .342 (79-231) with 58 runs scored, 15 doubles, a program-record matching six triples, a home run, 40 RBI and 27 steals (on 30 attempts).
Other draft hopefuls for Franklin Pierce are senior right-handers Arric Mather (Danville, N.H./Winnacunnet), a Baseball America Preseason All-American, Clay Jenkins (Easton, N.H./Profile) and Andrew McNulty (Norwood, Mass./Norwood). The trio could also ink free-agent deals or independent contracts should their names not get called on Thursday or Friday. Junior outfielder Kevin Renaud (Southbridge, Mass./Southbridge), twin brother of Keith, is the Ravens only other potential underclass draftee.
"This looks to be another great year for our players getting drafted," said King. "I wish these guys the best over the next couple of days with what should be a special time for them and the team."
Franklin Pierce (49-11, 26-4 NE-10), which posted a Northeast Region record for wins, recently completed its second-straight run (and third in five years) to the NCAA Division II Baseball Championships in Montgomery, Ala., after capturing both the Northeast-10 regular season and tournament crowns for the first time in program history.