TBO.com

Roger Mooney

Roger Mooney covers the Tampa Bay Rays for The Tampa Tribune, TBO.com and News Channel 8. He has covered the Rays since their first season in 1998, including 11 years for the Bradenton Herald. Roger has also covered Florida, South Florida and Florida State football, the Bucs and the Lightning.

@RMooneyTrib
TBO_Rays
Send us your questions

Most Recent Entries

Monthly Archives

Rays sign all four of their remaining top picks

Posted Aug 15, 2011 by Roger Mooney

Updated Aug 16, 2011 at 12:28 AM

ROGER MOONEY
BOSTON The Rays got it done, signing their top-pick Taylor Guerrieri and the other three remaining players taken in the first and supplemental round of the June draft before Monday’s midnight deadline.

Executive vice president Andrew Friedman signed Guerrieri, the right-handed pitcher from Spring Valley (S.C.) high to a reported $1.6 million bonus.

Guerrieri was taken 24th overall

The Rays also signed LSU outfielder Mikie Mahtook (31st overall) for a reported $1.15 million bonus, and 3B Tyler Goeddel (41st), from St. Francis (Calif.) High to a $1.5 million bonus.

LHP Grayson Garvin (59th), the 2011 SEC pitcher of the year from Vanderbilt, signed for a $37,000 signing bonus about an hour before the deadline.

Here are some bio information on all four as provided by the Rays on draft day:

(24) GUERRIERI, Taylor – RHP
School: Spring Valley (S.C.) HS
Born: 12/1/1992
B/T: R/R
HT/WT: 6-3/195
—Pronounced ga-REAR-ee.
—Rated by Baseball America as No. 10 overall prospect, the No. 7 pitcher and the best fastball among high school pitchers.
—Was named to the Third Team of the 2011 Preseason Baseball America All-America Team.
—Becomes the fourth straight high school player taken with the Rays first overall pick (2008-2011) and the first righthanded pitcher taken with the Rays first pick since Wade Townsend in 2005.
—As a senior at Spring Valley HS (Columbia, S.C.) went 6-1 with a 1.10 ERA in 9 games this season, including 3 complete games.
—Allowed 24 hits and 23 walks while striking out 72 batters in 51 innings of work.
—Also batted .507 (38-for-75) with nine home runs and 34 RBI, primarily at third base.
—Committed to the University of South Carolina.
—Guerrieri’s father played catch with balled-up socks while Taylor was still in a crib and says Taylor helped “coach” his older sister’s travel softball team when he was just 2 years old.

(31)MAHTOOK, Mikie – OF
School: Louisiana State University
Born: 11/30/89
B/T: R/R
HT/WT: 6-1/200
— Pronounced MAH-took.
—Rated by Baseball America as the No. 21 overall prospect, the No. 8 position player, the No. 3 center fielder and the No. 3 best athlete among college players.
—Attended LSU and studied sports administration.
—Earned a starting spot midway through the 2009 season and helped LSU win the College World Series championship.
—Played right field as a sophomore and moved back to center field as a junior.
—Named to the 2010 First Team All-Louisiana and 2010 SEC All-Tournament Team and was the 2009 SEC Tournament Most Valuable Player.
—His late father, Mike Mahtook, and his uncle, Robbie Mahtook, played football at LSU.—His other uncle, Ronnie Mahtook, played football at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette.
—Previously drafted by the Florida Marlins in the 39th round of the 2008 First-Year Player Draft.

(41)GOEDDEL, Tyler – 3B
School: St. Francis (Calif.) HS
Born: 10/20/92
B/T: R/R
HT/WT: 6-4/180
—Pronounced GOOD-ell.
—Hit .361 (30-for-83) as a senior at St. Francis (Calif.) HS. Scored 27 runs with seven doubles, two triples, two home runs, 19 RBI and nine stolen bases. Missed a month of the season with mononucleosis.
—Is ranked by Baseball America No. 89 prospect overall and the No. 7 third baseman in the draft.
—Committed to UCLA.
—His brother, Erik, is a pitcher in the New York Mets organization after being drafted in the 24th round last year out of UCLA.

(59) GARVIN, Grayson – LHP
School: Vanderbilt University
Born: 10/27/89
B/T: L/L
HT/WT: 6-6/225
—Rated by Baseball America as the No. 3 prospect out of the state of Tennessee, the No. 56 prospect overall and the No. 16 lefthanded pitching prospect.
—Named 2011 SEC Pitcher of the Year and named to First Team All-SEC. Also named a Second Team Louisville Slugger All-American in 2011.
—Through 16 games with Vanderbilt this season, has posted a 13-1 record with a 2.37 ERA in 102.1 innings. Has allowed 87 hits and 21 walks while striking out 89 batters.
—His 13 wins in 2011 set a single-season Vanderbilt record for victories.
—Named Cape Cod League Pitcher of the Year in 2010 with an ERA of 0.74. He allowed 18 hits in 36.2 innings pitched, striking out 38 and walking 12 for the Bourn Braves.

Roger Mooney

More Links:

Most Recent Entries

More

Monthly Archives

Rays sign all four of their remaining top picks

Reader Comments

Post a comment