FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 11, 2013
Courtesy of The Boston Herald, Written by Rich Thompson
Franklin Pierce baseball coach Jayson King had the nucleus of his stellar pitching staff pilfered away yesterday by high-profile organizations.
Franklin Pierce, a Division 2 program in the Northeast-10 Conference, had three hurlers selected early in Day 3 of the Major League Baseball draft.
The NCAA East Regional champions from Rindge, N.H., had a pair of right-handers picked in the 13th round and a southpaw go in the 14th.
“We had a good staff this year and, all things considered, this is a happy day for us,” said King, a Canton native who just completed his 15th season at Franklin Pierce.
Lefty Steve Hathaway of Acton got the news in the 14th round (420th overall), when Arizona came calling. Hathaway, an Acton-Boxboro product, will report to the Diamondbacks spring training facility in Scottsdale, Ariz., tomorrow.
Hathaway was monitoring the MLB draft tracker and watched his teammates’ names hit the web. The Chicago Cubs took junior Trevor Graham with the 378th pick, while Kevin McGowan (pictured) was chosen by the New York Mets at 386.
“I was excited when I saw Trevor go and Kevin go, and I was starting to get a little nervous,” said Hathaway. “But I had been in touch with the Diamondbacks so I was kind of expecting to be drafted in the next couple of rounds.
“When it finally came up I was excited.”
Hathaway had shoulder issues most of the season and was limited to eight appearances. The 6-foot-1, 180-pounder finished 0-3 with a save and a 2.90 ERA. Hathaway gave up 10 earned runs in 31 innings with 37 strikeouts and eight walks.
“I had two good starts and then I had a shoulder setback for 5-6 weeks and I missed all that time,” said Hathaway. “Then I came out of the pen and eventually worked back into starts and built up my innings.
“I like to mix things up and keep hitters off balance. Obviously the fastball is my best pitch, but if that’s not working I’m not afraid to come in with the curve or the change.”
Graham was the workhorse of the Ravens staff. He appeared in 16 games with 15 starts, threw 1101⁄3 innings and finished 10-2 with a save. He posted a 1.63 ERA with 123 strikeouts and 20 walks.
McGowan appeared in 15 games with 13 starts and threw 782⁄3 innings. He finished 7-2 with a 3.20 ERA, 60 strikeouts and 16 walks.
“We had a good staff this year and if Hathaway was ever healthy the whole year, it really would have been incredible,” said King. “It was still a really good pitching staff.”
The draft also claimed the Ravens’ top position player, first baseman Zach Mathieu. The 6-7, 265-pound junior went to the Mets in the 16th round with the 476th pick. The Ravens have had 25 players drafted since 2001.
