Maybe, someday, Drew Bailey will make The Show.
The right-handed pitcher is off to the professional ranks, after the Oakland Athletics selected him Wednesday in the third and final day of Major League Baseball's 2010 First Year Player Draft.
The A's tabbed Bailey in the 35th round, with the 1005th overall pick.
The slender 6-5 junior from Christiansburg, VA went 5-1 for the 29-9 Mountain Lions this past spring, with an ERA of 5.18. He led Concord with 13 appearances, making five starts with one complete game.
His last appearance for the Mountain Lions was on May 6th, when he came on in relief to get the win against Alderson-Broaddus in the first round of the West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference tournament in Johnstown, PA.
Bailey allowed one run on four hits in five innings, striking out four and walking none, in CU's 13-5 victory over the Battlers.
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As a 35th-round selection, Bailey faces a challenge in a bid to reach the Major Leagues. But several late-round picks have made it all the way, as this story from MLB.com attests: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd+20100608&content_id10956770&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb
Should Bailey sign a professional contract with the Athletics, he would likely be assigned to one of the organization's low minor league teams.
The A's have a rookie-level team in the Arizona League, which will begin play on June 21st. (AZL Athletics schedule: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?t=t_sch&cid=405)
The Athletics have a low Class A, short-season affiliate, the Vancouver Canadians. (team website: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/index.jsp?sid=t435)
Oakland's has a “high” Class A, full-season team, the Kane County Cougars of the Midwest League. (team website: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/index.jsp?sid=t435)
Oakland's “advanced” full-season Class A affiliate is the Stockton Ports of the California League. (team website: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/index.jsp?sid=t524)
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Bailey is one of 50 players the Athletics picked in the 2010 First Year Player Draft. Complete list of selections: mlb.mlb.com/mlb/events/draft/y2010/drafttracker.jsp
