In addition to the eye-opening six juniors taken in Major League
Baseball’s first-year player draft, next year’s UCLA
baseball team may have to deal with the departure of a few of its
incoming prospects. Two signees in the Class of ’05
““Â outfielder Kris Kasarjian and shortstop/pitcher Matt
Ware ““ were chosen, leaving open the possibility that they
will not attend UCLA and instead head straight for the pros.
“Ware won’t sign, but I think Kasarjian has a better
chance to sign than come here,” said coach Gary Adams, who
will be replaced by a new coach for next season. Kasarjian, taken
in the 13th round by the Seattle Mariners, is by far the more
likely to leave. For one, the money coming to a player in the 13th
round is much greater than the money that would be received by
Ware, who was drafted in the 42nd round by the Tampa Bay Devil
Rays. Ware would have been chosen much higher, but he will undergo
Tommy John Surgery on his elbow next week, according to the L.A.
Daily News. Though the Quartz Hill native will likely miss the next
year recovering, the injury may be a blessing in disguise for the
Bruins, as Ware now will almost undoubtedly attend UCLA.
COACHING SEARCH: A new UCLA baseball coach will
be named by July 1, according to UCLA associate athletic director
Ken Weiner. Weiner declined to name names, but will interview both
in-house and out-of-house candidates through the upcoming
weeks.
GRIFFIN UNDRAFTED: Despite nine Bruins being
taken in the draft, UCLA’s third-leading hitter was
surprisingly not selected. Senior third-baseman Preston Griffin,
who started 53 games, batted .313, and was second on the team in
runs and on-base percentage, was not one of the 1,498 players taken
over the draft’s 50 rounds. “I have mixed feelings on
the draft,” Adams said. “It was great to see the nine
guys get drafted, but I was disappointed that Preston did not get
drafted.” The senior, who has been a consistent starter all
four years, may have been a victim of a lack of flashiness or
simply geographic circumstances. “I was shocked,” Adams
said. “(It may have been) a battle of scouts across the
country, a West Coast scout wanting to draft Griffin might lose out
to a East Coast scout wanting to draft someone else.”
MOORE TAKEN: In more draft news, former UCLA
quarterback Matt Moore was chosen in the 22nd round by the Anaheim
Angels. Moore, who was selected as a third baseman, has not played
organized baseball since his junior year of high school, but showed
promise in a private workout for scouts. Moore must decide between
attending Colorado State, where he would have two years of
eligibility, or joining the Angels organization, as the Angels
indicated that they will not offer a deal that allows him to pursue
both sports.
PAC-10 STRUGGLES: Of the five teams from the
conference that made the NCAA regionals, only Arizona passed the
first round and will compete in this coming weekend’s super
regionals. Stanford, Washington, UCLA and Arizona State all fell,
despite all finishing better than the Wildcats in Pac-10 play.
Arizona will take on Long Beach State, which defeated Stanford
twice in the regionals, in a best-of-three-game series beginning
Friday in Long Beach.