Cleveland Indians Select Neil Wagner on Second Day of Major League Baseball Draft
6/9/2005 5:00:00 AM | Baseball
The Indians told Wagner they want to see how he performs for the Mankato MoonDogs in the Northwoods League this summer.
"They'll watch me for a bit and we'll try to come to some sort of decision on what to do," Wagner said.
Wagner is coming off the poorest season of his career. He was 1-2 with an 8.07 ERA in 35 2/3 innings. A fastball that once was clocked in the middle 90s had trouble getting out of the 80s because of mechanical problems brought on by offseason ankle injury.
He was 6-0 with a 1.40 ERA and 12 saves in 2004. He struck out 59 batters in 38 innings.
"I personally thought I should have gone a lot higher," Wagner said. "I had a bad year but based on the year before, I had one of the better seasons around."
Wagner has three options to consider: sign with the Indians right now, play in the Northwoods League this summer and then sign, or come back to NDSU for his senior year.
"His velocity came back at the end of the year and maybe you come back and work on it and get drafted next year," NDSU head coach Mitch McLeod said. "That's always a gamble. Coming back and playing after being drafted is a gamble because what if you get hurt? That's something Neil needs to talk about."
He's off to a good start with the MoonDogs. He's appeared in four games and has struck out nine and walked three in five innings. Most important, his fastball is back.
"I knew it would," Wagner said. "I knew it was a matter of time."
Wagner is the fifth major league draft pick out of North Dakota State and the first since catcher Tony Richards went to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 18th round in 1998.
| NDSU'S MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL DRAFT PICKS | |||||
| Player | Year | Order | Round | Overall | Club |
| John Renhowe | 1968 | 2nd | 28th | 621st | Oakland |
| Don (Chip) Devlin | 1983 | 17th | 4th | 95th | Chicago (AL) |
| Mike Gunderson | 1994 | 17th | 5th | 136th | Houston |
| Tony Richards | 1998 | 23rd | 18th | 546th | Los Angeles (NL) |
| Neil Wagner | 2005 | 14th | 21st | 634th | Cleveland |
