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Monday, June 5, 2000
Choice of
pro or college
ball not an easy
one for preps
Pro scouts lure high draft choices
with money, college coaches
talk up educationExpos pick Wayne No. 5
By Al Chase
How they fared
Star-BulletinTHE realization of a dream can begin today or tomorrow for a high school baseball player selected in the annual major league amateur free agent draft.
To sign a professional contract or not is a major decision for a young man and his parents.
The process can become arduous if the player has strong college aspirations or if he is selected in the early rounds where signing bonuses in six figures are common these days.
Prior to today's draft, 56 Hawaii high school players had been selected since the first draft in 1965.
Twenty eight signed professional contracts. Four of them, Doug Capilla, Joey DeSa, Sid Fernandez and Onan Masaoka, eventually played in the major leagues.
Of the 28 who did not sign, only Mike Fetters and Joey Meyer have played in the majors after being drafted in college.
College coaches will attempt to convince their recruits who have been drafted that three years in their program and three years of higher education will serve them better in the long run.
Major league scouts trying to sign a high school prospect will talk up the benefits of starting a pro career at a young age and concentrating on baseball full time.
The scouts counter going to college by offering a financial package that includes some bonus money and dollars that would be available for a college education should the prospect decide later to continue his education.
What they won't tell a high school prospect is how many ball players take advantage of the college dollars later in life when their pro career ends, especially those who don't make the majors. The number is not that great.
Going to college does not guarantee being a higher draft pick although many players who took that route improved their draft standing.
At one end of the scale is Darren Blakely who moved up 38 rounds in the draft after three seasons with the Hawaii Rainbows.
At the other end is Chuck Crim who fell 14 rounds after three UH seasons.
However, to show there are intangibles involved like taking advantage of opportunity, work ethic, etc., Crim went on to play pro ball for 12 seasons, the last eight in the big leagues. He also was the first player with Hawaii ties to sign a $1 million contract.
Dane Sardinha and Justin Wayne chose college over signing after being drafted in 1997 by Kansas City and Boston, respectively.
Chad Santos chose to sign after being drafted in the 22nd round by the Kansas City Royals last year.
"When pro baseball came into the picture, I had two divergent paths but Stanford was such a great opportunity," Wayne said.
"People come from different backgrounds. In my family we all cared about education. I have a much better understanding now of who I am.
"I feel like I'm ready for pro ball, but it's just a game and life is more than that.
"There are a lot of things to think about coming out of high school. You might not be able to explore your options or the consequences of your actions if you sign. I wasn't ready then."
Sardinha and Kansas City negotiated for some time three years ago, but couldn't come to terms.
"I wanted him to sign," said his father Dexter. "But, his mother wanted him to go to college."
Santos said there were a couple of junior colleges interested in him, but no four-year schools.
"I talked with a lot of guys who had been drafted and they said it (college) was kind of a risk, especially the injuries," Santos said.
He is in his second season of pro ball as the starting first baseman for Charleston, W. Va., in the Class A South Atlantic League. The Royals have changed his batting stance, and his batting average has started to move up.
"I'm seeing the ball good and I think I know what they want me to do," Santos said.
Jeff Martin, who pitched for Kailua High School before moving to the mainland his senior year, was an 8th round pick by Kansas City in 1995. He had signed with the University of Arizona and had a full scholarship.
"The money wasn't a big factor, but I wasn't an academic scholar either," Martin said. "I thought if I could learn more about baseball in college, I might as well go pro and have four years under my belt when guys my age got out of school."
Martin had arm surgery and missed the 1998 season, but is healthy and pitching for Altoona (Pa.) in Double-A.
UH Rainbow Scooter Martines also was picked in 1997 by Detroit in the 31st round.
"There was some money, but my thinking was I would get drafted later," Martines said.
"I thought college would be better for me until my junior year. There was a little growing up to do."
There is no one best way for a high school draftee to go. With the money available for high round choices, making a decision can be interesting, but not necessarily easy.
How they fared
These players with Hawaii ties were drafted out of high school and college. Each declined to turn pro after high school and went on to play in college. Listed is the round they were drafted in with the change in round selected:
PLAYER HS COLL CHANGE Darren Blakely 43 5 plus 38 Gerald Ako 35 8 plus 27 Mike Fetters 22 1 plus 21 Danny Kapea 30 11 plus 19 Jay Spurgeon 27 8 plus 19 Jon Hansen 21 3 plus 18 Dan Nyssen 22 7 plus 15 Chuck Jackson 21 7 plus 14 Jason Ross 27 13 plus 14 Derek Tatsuno 12 2 plus 10 Levon Largusa 11 4 plus 7 Thad Reece 24 17 plus 7 Scott Roberts 7 2 plus 5 Glenn Braggs 6 2 plus 4 Mike Campbell 5 1 plus 4 Joey Meyer 8 5 plus 3 Todd Crosby 4 5 minus 1 Bruce Walton 10 16 minus 6 Greg Burlingame* 15 24 minus 9 Larry Gonzales 11 22 minus 11 Rocky Ynclan 19 32 minus 13 Chuck Crim 3 17 minus 14 * While at the University of Hawaii, Burlingame was drafted in the fourth round by San Diego in 1985, but did not sign. He signed after being selected by Seattle in the 24th round in 1987.
