Angels select eight players on day 2 of the 2013 first year player draft
ANAHEIM, CA - The Angels selected eight players during rounds 3-10 today of the 2013 First-Year Player Draft, as announced by Angels' Director of Scouting Ric Wilson. The club selected seven consecutive pitchers from rounds 2-8, equaling the most consecutive pitchers selected to open a draft in team history (1999). The draft will conclude tomorrow (June 8) with rounds 11-40.
With their third round pick (93rd pick overall), the Angels selected right-handed pitcher Kenyan Middleton, a two-sport standout at Lane Community College in Eugene, OR. Standing at 6'3" and weighing 210 pounds, the freshman played shooting guard on the basketball team (11 points and 4.6 rebounds per game). On the mound, he went 2-3 with a 3.42 ERA (42 IP - 16 ER) and one save in 2013 (14 G). The right-hander struck out 45 batters and allowed 23 hits in his only season for the Titans.
A two-sport star at Milwaukie High School, Middleton went 5-2 with a 2.26 ERA and 73 strikeouts in 55 innings as a senior. He also batted .532 at the plate, hitting seven home runs and stealing 28 bases without being caught, in addition to scoring 20 points per game for the basketball team.
The Halos' fourth round pick (127th pick overall) was RHP Elliot Morris, a sophomore at Pierce College in Lakewood, WA. Morris, 21, went 4-3 with a 1.76 ERA (66.1 IP - 13 ER) for Pierce, striking out 95 batters while allowing only 44 hits in 12 games (11 starts). Hailing from Federal Way, WA, the birthplace of current Halo catcher Hank Conger, Morris had a 1.58 ERA and 12.4 K/9 in two years at Pierce.
With their fifth round pick, the Angels selected RHP Kyle McGowin, a junior at Savannah State University. McGowin, 21, went 12-2 with a 2.02 ERA (120.1 IP - 27 ER) and two saves last season for the Tigers, striking out 135 (third in Division I) while walking just 30. A semi-finalist for the Golden Spikes Award, McGowin is the first pitcher ever drafted out of SSU. In the MEAC Championship Game against Bethune-Cookman, he threw 10 shutout innings on 144 pitches to earn the win and send Savannah State to the NCAA tournament.
The sixth round featured RHP Harrison Cooney from Florida Gulf Coast University. In 21 appearances on the season (5 starts), Cooney finished with a 6-6 record and a 3.24 ERA in 66.2 innings of work as a junior. The Angels selected yet another pitcher in RHP Garrett Nuss from Seminole State College (FL) with their sixth pick. Halos' eighth round selection LHP Nate Smith from Furman University (SC). The seven consecutive pitchers selected to open the draft matched the most in club history (1999).
The club took their first position player in the ninth round (8th pick) with catcher Stephen McGee from Florida State University. McGee batted .299 with 8 HRs and 45 RBI in 55 games for the Seminoles during his junior campaign. To round out the second day, the Angels chose RHP Grant Gordon from Missouri State University with their 10th round pick (9th overall pick).