Saturday, August 4, 2001
[ MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL ]
Pruett signs The break Hubert Pruett needed came when his Pearl City Little League Big League team advanced to a tournament in Phoenix last week, just a few miles from the Milwaukee Brewers' minor league complex at Maryvale Baseball Park.
with Brewers
A little bit more pop on the
41st round pick's fastball gives
him more room to negotiateBy Al Chase
achase@starbulletin.comSelected in the 41st round of the 2001 first-year player draft, Pruett signed with the Brewers yesterday after a summer of negotiations through weekly telephone calls.
"After the draft, there was no rush because the round I was taken in was so late," Pruett said. "I just wanted to negotiate some money."
The 6-foot-2, 215-pound right-hander from Kamehameha also had the option of enrolling at Lewis-Clark State University, where he was to receive a full athletic scholarship.
While in Phoenix, he pitched in front of Greg Riddoch, Milwaukee's director of player development, West Coast crosschecker Ric Wilson and scout Corey Rodriguez.
"I had a good game, went six innings, gave up one hit, no walks and no runs," Pruett said. "My velocity increased up there and that's what opened their eyes."
Pruett's fastball hit 88-89 mph during the Interscholastic League of Honolulu season, but was in the 91 to 93 mph range in Phoenix.
"He wasn't just touching the 90s, he was pitching at it," Rodriguez said.
"Being in Phoenix was advantageous not only for him, but to the Milwaukee Brewers. It let us see him later in the summer. He had pitched a lot of innings and he kept himself in shape which is a credit to him. That was a key for Hubbie.
"The timing couldn't have been any better. He and his dad saw our complex and met a lot of our personnel. I've been watching him for two years. We drafted him to sign him. He truly wasn't a 41st-round pick. We decided to stay on him and were ready to make a final run at him even if he hadn't come to Phoenix."
Pruett, a first-team ILH all star, received a signing package that includes a bonus and money for college. He didn't reveal the size of the bonus, but one could tell he was very happy, perhaps even surprised at the amount.
"His bonus falls in the top 20 percent of all signing bonuses received in this year's draft. That's a fact," Rodriguez said.
Pruett will join the Brewers team in the Arizona League, get involved in the conditioning program and depending on how the coaches feel about his progress, he may pitch some before the short-season league ends. Another option is to have him attend instructional league.
"The last thing we want to do now is risk an injury to his arm," Rodriguez said.
"The biggest thing he has improved on is his delivery and arm action. And, he has added more depth to his slider. That's the most promising thing, even with a fastball in the 90s. That will make him that much more effective and he has an excellent chance to develop a change-up."
"I'm pretty excited," Pruett said.
