 "Photo: Ryan Moore")
A trio of Ole Miss pitchers got the news to vindicate a lifetime of devotion to the diamond as the first four rounds of the Major League Baseball draft concluded Thursday.
Junior Lance Lynn became the first Rebel off the draft board as the St. Louis Cardinals selected the 6-foot-3 right hander with the 39th overall pick in the compensation round between rounds one and two. Thursday became the day Lynn hoped would come after he turned down the Seattle Mariners offer of third round money when the organization took him in the sixth round out of Brownsburg High School in Indiana.
Lynn validated his decision to come to Oxford by improving his draft position and in the process became the highest-drafted Rebel since Chris Coghlan was drafted 36th overall by the Florida Marlins in 2006.
Lynn finished off his second consecutive All-SEC selection after going 8-5 with 110 strikeouts. If Lynn signs with the Cardinals, he will leave Ole Miss as the program's all time strikeout leader with 332 and fifth in wins with 22.
"It's an honor to be selected in the supplemental first round," Lynn said in a university statement. "I'm excited about the opportunity presented to me, and have had a wonderful 3-year career at Ole Miss. I'm excited to see what the future holds for me."
It was fitting that Cody Satterwhite became the next Rebel drafted as the Detroit Tigers selected him 68th overall in the second round. Lynn and Satterwhite have been paired at the hip since their arrival at Ole Miss in 2005 and immediately began lighting up radar guns.
Satterwhite never put together all his talent for an entire season the way Lynn did, but scouts still coveted his potential enough to take the Hillcrest Christen alum in the top 100 picks, a fact Satterwhite felt important.
"I'm really excited because this is a great opportunity," Satterwhite said. "It's big to be taken in the top 100 and be considered one of the top 100 baseball players in the country this year. I'm ready to embark on a new beginning and work on getting to the majors."
Satterwhite finished his junior season with a 3-5 record and a 5.33 ERA.
Shortly after Satterwhite was off the board, Scott Bittle got his name called by the New York Yankees as the 75th overall pick in the second round. The Yankees are getting a different pitcher than the one they selected all the way in the 49th round last season.
Bittle was able to forget about his performance during SEC play as a sophomore in which he went 0-4 with a 4.97 ERA and a .339 opponent batting average.
The JUCO transfer from Northeast Texas Community College became un-hittable at times as a junior. Bittle led the SEC in strikeouts, and finished with 130 on the season. He posted a 7-1 record with a 1.78 ERA and eight saves.
"It's a great honor to be selected by the New York Yankees," Bittle said. "I grew up watching them and love the style of play and the tradition of being a Yankee. It's a really great time for me and I want to thank the Yankees for selecting me. I also want to thank Coach Bianco and the Ole Miss baseball family for giving me the opportunity to take this step."
