The
calls came ringing in last week for 5 former Pittsfield Dukes
PITTSFIELD, Mass. (Sunday,
June 13, 2008) - The calls came ringing in last week for 5 former
Pittsfield Dukes.
The 2008 MLB draft took place with much fanfare and the Pittsfield
Dukes of the New England Collegiate Baseball League were lucky to
have alumni picked up by four respective Major League Baseball
franchises.
The first Duke selected was Nelson Gomez (Keystone College) who was
drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 24th round (738th
overall). Gomez just finished his junior season for the Giants in
Plume, PA and hit .481 this season for the Division III school. He
also continued to swing a powerful bat this season as he hit a
school record 17 home runs, accumulating 34 so far in his collegiate
career. He was also named the 2008 Player of the Year in the North
Eastern Athletic Conference. The Rio Grande, PR native has a .438
batting average with 163 RBIs and 138 runs scored in college this
far.
Second up was Tim Kiely (Trinity College) by the Los Angeles Angels
of Anaheim in the 27th round (829th overall). The Bantams starter
was 11-1 this season with a miniscule 1.28 ERA in 12 starts. In his
13 appearances, the right hander only allowed 80 hits and 3 walks in
his 97 innings pitched. He also totaled an impressive 107 strikeouts
in only 97 innings pitched. Tim also accumulated seven complete
games including three shutouts. Trinity College finished their
season by winning the Division III national championship and
finished first in both national polls. They went undefeated in the
regular season, and only lost game 1 of the national championship to
Johns Hopkins.
The next Duke selected was Scott Savastano who was drafted by the
Seattle Mariners in the 28th round of the draft. The Franklin Pierce
University junior was an All-American shortstop this season and was
drafted for the third time in four seasons. This is the 15th overall
selection from the Ravens in their school history. Coincidentally,
last year he was selected in the same round by the Cleveland
Indians. He was one of only two players on the squad who started
every game as he compiled a .390 batting average with nine home
runs, 45 runs batted in, and scoring 65 runs.
Next up, the Chicago White Sox drafted John Doyle in the 37th Round
with the 1110th overall selection. John is a right hander from
Boston College who just finished his senior season. He was drafted
by the Los Angeles Dodgers last season in the 21st round of the 2007
draft but decided to come back for his senior year where he compiled
a 6.96 ERA in 13 appearances (12 starts). John Doyle was 3-8 on the
season with 73 strikeouts in 75 innings pitched.
And lastly, Thomas DiBendetto, also from Trinity College, was
drafted in the 37th round as well by the Boston Red Sox. He was
drafted 1132nd overall from the Division III national championship
team out of Trinity College. The senior shortstop started every game
this season for the Bantams with a .342 average, two home runs and
35 RBIs. He also drew 29 walks, and was successful in stealing 10 of
11 bases on the season.
Thomas DiBenedetto, Tim Kiely and John Doyle all played for the
Pittsfield Dukes in 2005 while Scott Savastano played for Dukes last
season.
