ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, June 2, 1996 TAG: 9606030129
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: BASEBALL
SOURCE: RALPH BERRIER JR.
As a pitcher for the University of Virginia, Seth Greisinger became used to putting a lot of zeroes on the scoreboard alongside the names of opposing ballclubs.
After Tuesday, Greisinger could be looking at a lot of zeroes next to his name. Possibly five of them, with a 1 and a big fat dollar sign preceding them.
The amateur draft will be held Tuesday through Thursday and Greisinger, the junior ace of the Cavaliers' ACC tournament championship squad, will be one of the first players to get snatched.
Authorities no less than ESPN's Peter Gammons and Baseball America have rated Greisinger among the top 12 prospects in this year's draft. If he goes within the top 10 selections, he likely will be guaranteed a signing bonus of approximately $1 million.
``He'll probably get more than pocket change,'' said Dennis Womack, Virginia's coach.
Eight of the first 10 players drafted last year received more than $1 million just for signing.
Greisinger, currently involved in tryouts for the United States Olympic team in Millington, Tenn., is rated No.12 by Baseball America and is predicted to be headed to the Chicago White Sox, who have the 12th pick. Last year's 12th pick, Seton Hall's Matt Morris, received an $850,000 signing bonus from the Cardinals.
``Basically, he'll go before the 15th pick,'' said Womack. ``You just never know who will pull the trigger.''
Greisinger won a school-record 12 games this season in going 12-2 with a 1.76 ERA and 141 strikeouts in 123 innings. He beat five teams ranked in the Top 25 and was ranked second nationally in ERA.
Baseball America ranked him as the fourth-best college pitcher, eighth-best college prospect and his curveball was rated the best among college pitchers.
There's little mystery about Greisinger, considering that as many as 20 pro scouts would nestle themselves behind home plate to watch him pitch.
``You'd have two or three [scouts] from the same team ... you know, cross-checkers,'' said Womack. ``You had that little wad behind plate, but you knew there were probably more guys spread out.
``I thought Seth handled things very, very well. I think there was only a time or two when maybe he thought [the attention] was a little too much.''
Virginia could have as many as five players drafted. Right-hander Jason Sekany (6-4, 3.86 ERA) probably will go in the first five rounds, and shortstop Adam Robinson (.336 average, 10 home runs, 40 RBI), pitcher Craig Zaikov (8-1, 2.48 ERA) and catcher Justin Counts (.274, 6 HR, 37 RBI) have draft potential.
BARKER THE BOPPER: One of the most eye-popping ratings in the Baseball America draft preview was the ranking of Virginia Tech's Kevin Barker, listed as the No.2 power-hitting prospect among the top 100 players.
Barker, an outfielder who batted .361 with 20 home runs, is tabbed the 65th best prospect in the draft. He is expected to go before the third round and could sneak in as a late first-round pick. Scouts like Barker's bat, arm, speed and the fact that he could play in the outfield or at first base.
``When you look at all the good players out there and see Kevin's name among them, it's a great thing for Virginia Tech,'' said Tech assistant coach Jay Phillips. ``Everything we hear says he'll go between rounds one through five. It depends on who you talk to.''
GOOD JUMP: Virginia right fielder Symmion Willis gained a step on most of his fellow collegians when he signed with the Toronto Blue Jays on May 26, not long after the Cavaliers were eliminated from the NCAA baseball tournament by Alabama.
Willis, who did not make an error all season and was named to the ACC all-tournament team, had his choice of teams if he signed before May 28, one week before the amateur draft. That is the case for all collegians who are 21 or over (Willis is 23) and who have not been drafted.
Willis, the starting quarterback for UVa's football team for parts of two seasons, had not played baseball in nearly four years when he went out for the team in 1995. He started 60 of 63 games this year as a fifth-year senior and batted .285 with six home runs.
DRAFT NOTABLES: Tech could have three pitchers - Brian Fitzgerald, Sean Hummel and Charlie Gillian - go in the mid-to-late rounds. Fitzgerald, a junior left-hander, was 7-5 with a 3.30 ERA and 86 strikeouts in 96 innings, Hummel, considered by some scouts to be the best senior pitcher in the state, was 7-4 with a 3.90 ERA and Gillian has a school-record 34 saves in three seasons. ...
Ferrum left-hander Jim Hamilton should get picked within the first 10 rounds. ... Radford infielder and Northside product Kelly Dampeer saw his power numbers drop this year but could still be a late-round pick.
INSIDE PITCHES: Former Avalanche pitcher Jamey Wright tossed seven no-hit innings in his first start with Class AAA Colorado Springs. ... California Angels manager Marcel Lachemann had this to say about former Radford standout Phil Leftwich, who was returned to Triple-A after two unimpressive starts for California:
``I think some of the arm strength is not there. He's still three or four miles per hour under what he pitched at one night in '93 [before his shoulder surgery], and that's quite a bit.''
LENGTH: Medium: 95 linesby CNB