Big decision in front of Savastano
By Ryan Wood, Plymouth Bulletin
PLYMOUTH -
When Scott Savastano started for the Plymouth Post 40 American
Legion baseball team as a 15-year-old without a full year of high
school varsity baseball under his belt, people had a feeling that a
special baseball player was in the making.
A couple weeks before he finished his first year of high school,
Savastano played in the same lineup as high school juniors and
seniors, varsity all-stars, and future college ballplayers. By the
end of that summer’s American Legion season, Savastano proved
he could hang with the big kids. And it quickly became clear that
this kid was for real.
Three years later, Savastano finished his high school career at
Plymouth North batting .623, tops in the state. He won the Atlantic
Coast League’s Most Valuable Player award. He also had a
decision to make – play professional baseball or begin a
college baseball career at Franklin Pierce University.
A few days after he graduated Plymouth North in 2005, the Chicago
White Sox drafted Savastano, taking him in the 33rd round (995th
overall). While in high school, Savastano had a workout with the
Red Sox at Fenway Park and also was scouted by the Diamondbacks,
Dodgers, Angels, and Twins.
Savastano opted to go to Franklin Pierce to prove himself on the
collegiate level, which he did right away. In 2006, the
shortstop/third baseman was named the Northeast-10 Freshman of the
Year. He led the team in hitting as a freshman with a .397 batting
average. He was named to the National Collegiate Baseball
Writer’s All-Northeast Second Team. He was named the
conference’s freshman of the week five times.
Now, six years after his Legion debut and three years after
graduating high school, Savastano is the closest he’s ever
been to being a professional baseball player. As early as this
weekend, Savastano could end up playing professional baseball. But
his pro ball career won’t begin anywhere near Plymouth.
Savastano, who turns 22 Thursday, would wind up more than 3,000
miles from home and an hour or so south of the Canadian border,
calling Everett, Wash., his home for the summer.
Two hours south of Vancouver, but just a few exits north of
Seattle, Everett is the home of the Everett AquaSox, the Seattle
Mariners Short Season Class A Affiliate and participant in the
Northwest League. Current Major Leaguers Gil Meche, Joel
Piñeiro, and Felix Hernandez all played for the AquaSox.
The Mariners drafted Savastano last week in the 28th round (852nd
overall pick) of the 2008 Major League Baseball’s First-Year
Player Draft. If he signs a contract with the Mariners, he will
leave Plymouth almost immediately.
“They want to keep me as a shortstop and then see what I can
do on a professional level. They want to see where I do
best,” Savastano said. “Some teams said I’m too
big for a shortstop, that I didn’t have good hands. Some
teams didn’t think I had good range. In college ball, I had
plenty of range. I’m very confident (in my ability).
It’s what got me here, basically. Playing pro ball is a dream
of mine, and it could start this week.”
The contract negotiations began this week. Savastano, his advisor
Joe Rosen, and Coyle and Cassidy High School Admissions Director
Brian Nichols, who also is an area baseball scout for the Seattle
Mariners, will meet and try to agree to the terms of a contract.
The Mariners want the contract negotiations wrapped up quickly.
They want Savastano in Everett, Wash., by the start of their
season, which begins Sunday, June 15.
“I’ve not gone through a negotiation process yet.
It’s kind of exciting to see how it goes,” Savastano
said. “They want me to fly in on June 14th. I’m anxious
to go out there. But I’m not about to rush into
anything.”
Seattle wants to sign Savastano. In the days leading up to the
draft, the Mariners said they’d select him fairly early.
Actually, they said they’d take him “no later than
round 15.” Round 15 passed and so did rounds 16 through 27.
Savastano fell to round 28 despite the fact that scouts, coaches,
and Baseball America projected him to go no later than the 8th
round.
The Mariners, Red Sox, and Phillies all wanted Savastano,
especially when he still was available late in the draft.
“The Phillies called my advisor and said they’d pick me
in the 7th or 8th round. I was watching the 7th and 8th rounds on
the computer and they didn’t pick me,” Savastano said.
“All the scouts had me going between round four and 10. I
guess I got lost on the draft board.”
Savastano said he doesn’t know why the Mariners waited so
long to draft him. But when they realized Savastano still
hadn’t been taken when their pick came up in round 28, they
jumped at the chance to scoop him up before he fell any
further.
“It’s good because when they called me, they were
really excited,” Savastano said. “They said, ‘I
can’t believe we got you in the 28th round.’ So
it’s good that I got drafted by them.”
To Savastano, the round is just a number. Slightly disappointed
that he didn’t go 20 rounds earlier, as was projected,
Savastano said he’s still excited about having the chance to
play professional baseball.
“No matter what round you’re taken in, it’s all
about what you do after the draft,” Savastano said.
“They said I’m a top-10 rounder; I’m going to
play like one.”
Savastano has until Aug. 15, 2008, to sign with the Mariners. If he
doesn’t, he has the option to return to Franklin Pierce,
which he hasn’t completely ruled out.
“It is an option,” Savastano said about returning to
school for his senior season. “Coach (Jayson) King is really
trying to recruit me. It’s like high school all over again.
If I don’t like the situation, I’ll go back.”
That’s what happened last summer, sort of. The Cleveland
Indians drafted Savastano in June 2007 in the 28th round (857th
pick overall). But they wanted to take a watch-and-see
approach.
“When (the Cleveland Indians) drafted me, they wanted to see
how my hand would be affected,” Savastano said. “I
thought it was best to go back to school. I had no problem with
(Cleveland). The doctor said it was 100 percent recovered and to
treat it like normal. It seems to be holding up.”
As a sophomore, the wrist injury that concerned Cleveland sidelined
Savastano for 41 of the Raven’s 60 games. He returned and
wound up going 25-for-70 (.357 batting average) and had three
doubles, one triple, one home run, and 14 RBI in 19 games.
Cleveland wanted to keep track of Savastano’s progress last
summer.
As a non-roster invitee with the Wareham Gatemen last summer,
Savastano shined during the preseason. He batted .333, good enough
for second best on the team. In the field, Savastano had five
assists at third base
But just as the Indians wanted to track Savastano’s progress,
the Detroit Tigers wanted to watch Gatemen infielder and Vanderbilt
junior Dominic de la Osa play third base, and de la Osa was a
contract player. Another obstacle that stood in Savastano’s
way was the Gatemen’s roster last summer included three
shortstops and two third basemen, and all five had signed full
summer contracts. Essentially, there was no room for Savastano as a
full-time player.
Savastano then decided to play in the New England Collegiate
Baseball League for the Pittsfield Dukes. He led the team with a
.348 batting average and a .467 slugging percentage. He finished
second on the team with 17 RBI in 24 games. He was named the
NECBL’s Most Improved Player. In the summer of 2006,
Savastano had played in the NECBL for the Keene Swamp Bats and
batted .217 with two doubles and three RBI.
“The summer leagues teach you how to perform every day.
It’s awesome,” Savastano said of his experience in the
NECBL. “You learn how to play on the road; you fight for a
position. The coach from the Pittsfield Dukes wants me back. He
said, ‘come back, you’ve earned that spot.’ He
wants me to play over a shortstop from San Diego State.”
Savastano’s future will be decided upon quickly. Contract
talks are underway and may be wrapped up by the weekend. If that
doesn’t pan out, Savastano could always jump onto a summer
league team and then return to Franklin Pierce. Right now, however,
it’s hard not to think about playing professional baseball.
And if that contract with Seattle is signed, Savastano will turn
from Red Sox fan to a Seattle Mariners supporter. He knows who
he’s rooting for.
“The team I’m playing for,” he said. “I
love to win. That’s what I play for. If I do make it up to
the pros, it’d be awesome to come back to Boston.”
Inking a Major League deal might also mean that a decent amount of
money may land into Savastano’s hands. He knows he owes some
of that money to his older sister, Jocelyn.
“I’m not going to lie, I’ve been borrowing money
from her. I just asked her for $20 the other day and $10 dollars
when I went fishing yesterday,” he said. “She knows her
money will come.”
Savastano said that if one day the big money starts coming in,
he’d love to be able to give back to the community,
especially to Plymouth North baseball.
“The one thing he wants is a new baseball field,”
Savastano said about Plymouth North head coach Dwayne Follette.
Savastano was the first player ever drafted for a high school team
coached by Follette. “It’s going to be a while before I
can afford that, but I’d love to give it to him. It’s
all about where you grew up and where you started. You never forget
where you came from.”
