Pitcher Dustin Beggs, drafted by the St. Louis Cardinals, was the Division I junior college strikeout leader this season. (photo by David Tulis)
J. T. Phillips, who had a .419 batting average for GPC this year, was drafted by the Texas Rangers. (photo by David Tulis)
Five from GPC Baseball program drafted by Major League teams
Two Georgia Perimeter College baseball players—Dustin Beggs and J.T. Phillips—plus three alumni of the program were selected by Major League Baseball organizations in the 2014 MLB First-Year Player Draft.
Leading off the pick parade was right-handed pitcher Beggs, selected by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 17th round, the 525th pick overall. Beggs led Division I junior colleges with 125 strikeouts in 2014. The 6-foot-3 righty also posted a league-leading 1.65 ERA for GPC.
Right on Beggs’ heels came pitcher-shortstop Phillips, taken by the Texas Rangers at No. 546 in the 18th round as a pitcher. Phillips first gained fame as a pitcher-shortstop for the Columbus team that won the Little League World Series in 2006. At GPC, he sported a conference-leading .419 batting average, in addition to winning honors as both an infielder and a pitcher.
Former GPC players chosen in the 2014 MLB draft were:
—John Fidanza, a catcher for Georgia Gwinnett College who played for the Jaguars in 2012, drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 23rd round.
—Dawson Brown, GPC pitcher in 2013, drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 24th round.
—John Mark Connell, GPC pitcher in 2011, drafted by the Los Angeles Angels in the 26th round. Connell transferred from GPC to Kennesaw State University, where he pitched in the NCAA Division 1 Super Regional this past weekend.
Three GPC players were drafted by Major League Baseball teams last year: pitchers Sam Bragg and Alan Busenitz and outfielder Christopher Madera.
Of the eight players drafted in the past two years, six are pitchers—a testament to the mentoring in this area provided by former head coach Danny Blue and current Jaguar head coach Brett Campbell, a former pitcher in the Washington Nationals organization.
“I’m very humbled at the number of pitchers we’ve had drafted the last two years, as I take pride in our pitching,” Campbell said. “I was fortunate to learn from the very best, and it’s great to see that knowledge translate to the success of our young pitchers.”
(Read the full story on GPC’s Athletics website.)