UCLA baseball offseason roundup
By Daily Bruin Staff
Aug. 21, 2011 2:15 p.m.
Catching you up on all things UCLA baseball. A lot has happened this offseason.
Bruins lose four players to MLB
Monday’s deadline for drafted players to sign with the team that chose them did not go according to plan for coach John Savage. Three would-be incoming freshmen ““ Austin Hedges, Tyler Goeddell and Joe Ross ““ along with a reliever from last year’s team ““ Mitchell Beacom ““ all signed deals near the deadline.
Ross, a right handed pitcher from Oakland, was the highest pick of the bunch. He was selected No. 25 overall by the Padres and received a $2.75 million signing bonus.
Hedges, thought to be the Bruins’ catcher of the future, received $3 million to sign with the Padres despite being picked lower than Ross, No. 82 overall to be exact.
The Bruins could be in trouble behind the plate as Tyler Heineman and Richard Brehaut are the only catchers left on the roster. Heineman is solid defensively but only had 46 at bats last season, playing behind Steve Rodriguez, now with the Arizona Diamondbacks. As for Brehaut, he’s currently engaged in a battle to be UCLA’s starting quarterback. It’s safe to say baseball isn’t the first thing on his mind.
Goeddel received $1.5 million to sign with the Tampa Bay Rays. He was picked No. 41 overall.
Rex Peters hired as hitting coach
Peters will have big shoes to fill as Rick Vanderhook left to take the head coaching job at Cal State Fullerton. Peters comes from UC Davis where he served as head coach from 2003-2011 and took the Aggies from Division II to Division I during his tenure.
Vanderhook was responsible for all things at the dish. It will be interesting to see if Savage puts the same amount of trust in Peters that he did in Vanderhook.
Cole signs with Pirates
As expected, former UCLA pitcher and No. 1 overall draft pick Gerrit Cole and his agent, Scott Boras waited until the last minute to reach a deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates. Cole’s signing bonus was reported at $8 million.
He was introduced with the Pirates on Saturday alongside his family and Savage.
“Everybody dreams of it,” Cole said at the press conference. “But I don’t know if anybody really thinks that they’re going to go number one overall. I was just excited to be able to go to college and have that experience, which was unbelievable.”
Bauer rising through minors
Kevin Goldstein of ESPN.com had an interesting column on former UCLA pitcher and No. 3 overall pick Trevor Bauer seen here, insider account required.
Bauer cruised through the California League and had made two starts with the Double-A Mobile BayBears, striking out eight in each appearance. Goldstein thinks Bauer could end up with the Diamondbacks before season’s end.
