Baseball America Names Four Bears Top Prospects
1/28/2004 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Jan. 28, 2004
WACO, Texas - Four Baylor baseball players were included in Baseball America's Fab 50 for the 2004 season. Senior RHP Zane Carlson, junior 3B/OF Michael Griffin, sophomore RHP Mark McCormick and freshman LHP Cory VanAllen were named to the top 50 college prospects list for their respective classes.
Carlson, a 16th-round selection of the San Diego Padres in 2003, was listed 20th on the seniors list. The Highland Park [Texas] product is the nation's active career saves leader and needs 16 saves to break the all-time Division I record. Carlson, a third-team preseason All-America selection by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, was 3-4 with a 2.61 ERA, 11 saves and 71 strikeouts in 58.2 innings of work in 2003.
Griffin, a product of Dallas-Cedar Hill High School, hit .350 with 11 home runs and team-highs of 76 RBI, 26 doubles and eight triples in 2003. He also toted a .605 slugging percentage and collected 103 hits, second all-time at Baylor only to David Murphy's 121 hits from last season. Griffin, a preseason All-America selection by the NCBWA (first team) and by Baseball America, has never been drafted.
McCormick was the highest-ranking Baylor player, slotted fourth on the sophomores list. The Houston-Clear Creek High School product was an 11th-round draft pick by the Baltimore Orioles out of high school in 2002. McCormick was 6-2 with a 5.32 ERA and 66 strikeouts in 64.1 innings last season.
True freshman VanAllen, a graduate of Clements High School in Sugar Land, Texas, was listed 11th on the freshmen list. VanAllen was a third-round selection by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2003.
Baylor's 2004 season begins Feb. 13-15 as the Bears host Loyola Marymount for a three-day, three-game series at Baylor Ballpark. Friday's game begins at 6 p.m., Saturday's at 3 p.m. and the Sunday finale at 1 p.m.
