DODGERS NOTEBOOK: DRAFT PRODUCES ANOTHER PITCHER.Byline: TONY JACKSON
Anthony (Antonio) Jackson, best known as Tony Jackson Staff Writer SAN DIEGO San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. -- For the second year in a row, the Dodgers used their first pick of baseball's amateur draft on a high-school pitcher from Texas, taking right-hander Chris Withrow out of Midland Christian with the 20th overall pick. "I was completely shocked," Withrow said. "To be honest, I didn't think I would go that high. After all the ups and downs ups and downs pl.n. Alternating periods of good and bad fortune or spirits. ups and downs Noun, pl alternating periods of good and bad luck or high and low spirits , I'm very happy with how things turned out." The Dodgers took University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (UT), sometimes called the University of Tennessee at Knoxville (UT Knoxville or UTK), is the flagship institution of the statewide land-grant University of Tennessee public university system in the American state of Tennessee. lefty James Adkins James Adkins is a pitcher who was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball 39th overall in the 2007 Major League Baseball Draft.[1] 1. ^ 2007 MLB.com Draft tracker with their supplemental first-round pick and rounded out the first day by taking four more high schoolers. Dodgers scouting head Logan White said Withrow, 18, already has a polished delivery. "He is athletic, and he has great makeup," White said. "He has excellent arm action, some of the best I have seen since I have been scouting." Withrow is being advised by Houston-based agents Alan and Randy Hendricks Randy (Randal) Hendricks (b. November 18, 1945 in Missouri) is an attorney and sports agent considered a pioneer in the field of sports representation. He is managing partner of Hendricks Sports Management in Houston, Texas. , who also negotiated the $2.3 million bonus the Dodgers gave to last year's first pick, Dallas lefty Clayton Kershaw Clayton Edward Kershaw (born March 19, 1988 in Dallas, Texas, U.S.) is a 6'3", 210 lbs., left-handed pitching prospect for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Kershaw attended Highland Park High School and established himself as an elite high-school prospect in 2006 when he posted a 13-0 . But Kershaw, easily the club's top pitching prospect, was taken seventh overall. Withrow figures to sign for between $1.2 million and $1.4 million. Pierre sits: Juan Pierre Juan D'Vaughn Pierre (born August 14, 1977 in Mobile, Alabama), is a professional baseball center fielder who plays for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He bats and throws left-handed. In his seven years through 2006, Pierre has batted . , the Dodgers' much-maligned leadoff hitter In baseball, a leadoff hitter is a batter who bats first in the lineup. Strategy Leadoff hitters must possess certain traits to be successful: they must reach base at a proficient rate and be able to steal bases. , was out of the starting lineup for just the second time this season after going hitless in eight at-bats without hitting a ball out of the infield in the previous two games. He entered the day with three hits in his past 23 at-bats, all three of them infield singles. Pierre also came in with a streak of 331 consecutive games played. "I want to play every day, but I don't make the lineup out," Pierre said. The surprise wasn't so much that the struggling Pierre sat, but that manager Grady Little said he would be back in the lineup, leading off no less, when the Dodgers begin a nine-game homestand tonight against Toronto. Little spoke with Pierre on Wednesday about Pierre's tendency to hit balls in the air, the last thing a player whose game is built around speed wants to do. But Pierre said he isn't concentrating specifically on pounding balls into the ground during his off-the-field work. "That's just my natural swing, and I don't usually have to think about it," Pierre said. "Once I start thinking about it, that's when I start hitting fly balls. I'm just taking my normal drills every day, whether I'm hitting fly balls or not." Pierre eventually came in to play center fieldbut didn't bat. Saito ready: Closer Takashi Saito felt no pain in his left hamstring when he practiced covering first base several hours before the game. Little said he would be available as usual starting tonight. CAPTION(S): box Box: DODGERS vs. TORONTO - Tony Jackson |
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