BY ALLAN SIMPSON

For the first time since baseball’s inaugural draft in 1965, junior college players were treated equally this year with the more established talent at the four-year college and high school levels. The abolishment of the draft-and-follow rule, effective with the 2007 draft, meant that all junior college players were required to enter this year’s draft, with none siphoned off any longer through extra drafts or a liberal signing window.

The result was the selection of 33 junior-college players in the first 10 rounds (or 10.2 percent) and 221 in the entire pool of 1,504 drafted players (14.7 percent). It also led to the drafting of one juco player in the first round, one in the second and two in the third. A year ago, the highest pick was a third-rounder.

Pitt (N.C.) CC shortstop Lonnie Chisenhall became only the 14^th junior-college pick in draft history to be selected in the first round, when he was chosen 29^th overall by the Indians.

Predictably, the abolishment of the draft-and-follow rule resulted in the drafting of more junior college players this year than a year ago, when 176 players were selected. But this year’s total was significantly down from 2006, when there were 383 players drafted out of junior colleges.

The increase of 45 picks from 2007 to 2008 was expected because all of the elite junior college prospects were required to enter the draft this year. A year ago, 78 players signed prior to the draft under the old draft-and-follow process, significantly eroding the pool for last year’s draft. Just 20 junior college players were selected in the first 10 rounds.

While the number of players drafted this year was more than a year ago, it was significantly less than in 2006 or at the height of the draft-and-follow era, when big league teams would draft players earmarked for junior college as a matter of routine because they controlled their rights for 51 weeks and were able to follow their progress through the fall and spring before making a determination whether or not to sign them.

With the draft-and-follow rule no longer part of the draft equation and a rigid Aug. 15 signing deadline now in place for every draft pick, the window for teams to ‘draft-and-follow’ their picks is now only about 10 weeks.

“That’s just not long enough any more to expect players to show the kind of improvement that we could see under the old system when we had nearly a year to evaluate them,” an American League scouting director said. “Consequently, there’s no point any longer in drafting as many junior college players or high school players that are expected to attend junior college.”

The new rules also will increase the incidence of junior college players becoming a greater factor in the early rounds, with Chisenhall’s selection in the first round this year an immediate example. That was an unlikely occurrence in the past because of draft rules that treated junior college players differently.

From 1966-86, juco players were automatically subject to one of two January draft phases. They were also more likely to be included in the secondary phase (for previously drafted players) in June. As a result, most of the elite junior college players rarely were eligible for the draft’s traditional June regular phase and only one junior college player—infielder Glenn Franklin, picked ninth overall by the Montreal Expos in 1978—was a first-round pick in that phase through the draft’s first 21 years.

The abolishment of the January drafts and June secondary phase in 1986 ushered in the draft-and-follow era. That process led to many of the best junior college players, who had been drafted the previous year, signing before the start of the closed period the following year, sapping that year’s draft of the best junior-college talent.

From 1987-2007 (the draft-and-follow era), there were 12 junior college players drafted in the first round—the highest being Miami-Dade South righthander Alex Fernandez, who went on to win 107 games in a 10-year big league career, with the fourth overall pick in 1990. Fernandez, however, was technically not subject to the draft-and-follow rule as he had transferred to Miami-Dade from the University of Miami after his freshman year. In that sense, his situation then was similar to Chisenhall’s this year.

Chisenhall attended a four-year school, South Carolina, as a freshman but was dismissed early that season after being arrested on burglary and grand larceny charges. He was too late to petition to become eligible for the 2007 draft under rules that govern players at four-year schools, and ended up enrolling at a junior college last fall, making him automatically eligible for this year’s draft.

The Indians had pursued Chisenhall closely in 2006 when he was a senior at a North Carolina high school and was selected in the 12^th round by the Pirates, and intensified their coverage of the lefthanded-hitting shortstop this spring.

His legal troubles notwithstanding, the only question the Indians had on draft day was whether Chisenhall would last until the 29^th pick after he hit .410-8-66 with 27 doubles, 38 walks and only eight strikeouts this spring for Pitt CC, leading his team to within a game of the Junior College World Series.

“He was the best player available,” said Indians scouting director Brad Grant. “Lonnie was a guy we had targeted from the beginning. Picking at 29, it’s really difficult to know who’s going to be there, but there were no surprises above him, and he was the best talent on the board when it was our turn to pick.”

Understandably, Chisenhall’s legal issues may have scared off some teams drafting ahead of the Indians, helping to pave the way for Chisenhall to drop to late in the first round. In anticipation of Chisenhall falling to them, the Indians did their due diligence to ensure that his legal problems are behind him.

“We went above and beyond doing our research,” Grant said. “We very much value makeup and character. Every person we talked to spoke very highly of Lonnie’s character. We truly believe it was a one-time mistake, that it was a case that he was in the wrong place at the wrong time. We believe he learned from it and moved on.”

Chisenhall was placed on six months probation earlier this year for his misdeed and charges could be dismissed as early as mid-August.

Meanwhile, the Indians plan to leave Chisenhall at shortstop initially, before possibly transferring him to third base. His bat is his most advanced tool. He’s a disciplined hitter with gap power and expects to generate legitimate power as he matures.

Chisenhall vs. Ladendorf

It was expected to be a tossup whether Chisenhall or Howard (Texas) College shortstop Tyler Ladendorf would be the first junior college player drafted this year. Ladendorf, who hit a Division I-leading .542 with 16 homers, 82 RBIs and 31 stolen bases in a breakout sophomore year after being just a 32^nd-round pick a year ago, was selected with the 60^th pick overall, by the Twins.

Wallace State-Hanceville (Ala.) righthander Craig Kimbrel and Chipola (Fla.) righthander Ryan Chaffee were both selected in the third round. Kimbrel, who struck out 123 in 81 innings this spring with a fastball clocked at 97 mph, was tabbed by the Braves, the same team that drafted him in the 33^rd round a year ago.

Chaffee, who went to the Angels nine picks after Kimbrel, was named the outstanding pitcher at the 2007 Junior College World Series while pitching Chipola to the title. He elected not to sign a year ago after being drafted by the Braves in the 43^rd round, and his chances of being drafted in an early round this year were in jeopardy when he broke a bone in his foot in early April. But he returned in little more than five weeks to throw a three-hit, 18-strikeout shutout in the championship game of the Florida junior college tournament to propel Chipola back to the juco national tournament. But Chipola was eliminated after losing two of three games.

The selection of the first four junior college players was predicted pretty much from the start of the 2008 season. What was not expected was the selection of Seminole (Fla.) CC shortstop Dee Strange-Gordon with the next pick, or the free fall of College of Southern Nevada righthanders Colby Shreve and Taylor Cole.

Gordon, the son of Philadelphia Phillies righthander Tom Gordon, was academically ineligible this spring and had played little baseball in the last three years—either as a high school senior or two years in junior college. But he showed his athletic, acrobatic actions at shortstop in workouts for scouts and the Dodgers jumped on him in the fourth round.

The two Southern Nevada pitchers, meanwhile, dropped significantly after Shreve injured his elbow in March and subsequently underwent Tommy John surgery in mid-May, and Cole announced shortly after his team, ranked No. 1 in the pre-season, was eliminated from national contention that he would embark on a two-year Mormon mission.

Shreve, who is not expected to pitch again for nearly a year, was selected in the sixth round by the Phillies. Prior to his injury, Shreve had projected as a possible first-rounder. Cole was projected as a possible third-rounder before his unexpected announcement and tumbled all the way to the Diamondbacks in the 31^st round.

Grayson Wins Juco Series

Texas’ Grayson County College won this year’s Division I Junior College World Series, capturing five straight games to win its third title in 10 years—but only the first with Dusty Hart as head coach. The Vikings defeated Alabama’s Shelton State 13-2 in the final, recovering from a slow 12-9 start on the year to finish at 48-15.

With the win, Grayson County moved to No. 1 in the final PG Crosschecker Top 50 Junior College rankings, supplanting Tennessee’s Walters State, which went just 1-2 in the 10-team tournament, played in Grand Junction, Colo. Walters State (55-9) had held the No. 1 spot since early March.

Hart had been to the JUCO World Series with Grayson three times before, once as a player in 1998 and twice as an assistant coach, in 2003 and 2004. The only two years he wasn’t with the team—1999 and 2000—the Vikings won it all.

“I’ve been a part of every trip we’ve been on except the two we won,” Hart said. “I’m not one of those guys who doubts myself, but I don’t think about it that much, to be honest with you. This is my dream, this is why I do what I do and this is why I’m in junior college. I want to come to Grand Junction every year.”

Hart, in his third year as the Vikings’ skipper, won his first national title behind a strong pitching performance from freshman righthander Conrad Flynn, who struck out 11, didn’t walk a batter and allowed two runs on six hits in a complete-game performance.

“He was unbelievable,” Hart said. “He went out and threw strikes, commanded the strike zone. He didn’t have his breaking ball his first outing and tonight it was outstanding, just outstanding. He walked 13 guys the entire year. He’s so competitive. I knew we had a good shot to win the game tonight because of him.”

First baseman Alex Johnson helped out by crushing a three-run home run to the deepest part of the park in the decisive third inning. Johnson’s home run turned a 3-2 game into a 6-2 cushion and the Vikings scored in every inning except the sixth and ninth. Flynn never let Shelton State (49-18) in the game as his breaking ball was working much better than in the Vikings’ opener, which he won 18-2 over Hagerstown (Md.) CC.

“Finally, my curveball got over the plate and set up my fastball,” said Flynn, who was selected the tournament’s outstanding pitcher. He picked up two wins and also won the hearts of fans in attendance as his older brother, Layton, is serving with the U.S. Army in Afghanistan and sent an e-mail message wishing his brother and teammates good luck. The message was delivered over the stadium public-address system in the opener.

Grayson won its third national championship in six trips, following the back-to-back titles in 1999 and 2000. The Vikings handed Flynn a 3-0 lead in the first inning on a walk, back-to-back singles and a throwing error. Grayson ended up scoring 13 runs on 16 hits, with tournament MVP J.D. Alfaro hitting a key triple to the corner in right field in the fourth inning. Alfaro hit .476 with 14 RBIs in the tournament and played flawlessly at shortstop.

As a Grayson freshman in 2007, Alfaro was known primarily as a solid defender in the field with above-average arm strength. But he made significant headway at the plate this season—primarily after his more-acclaimed double-play partner, Miami-bound second baseman Scott Lawson, broke his wrist midway through the year, opening the door for Alfaro to move into the No. 3 spot in the batting order. Alfaro, a ninth-round pick in this year’s draft, responded by hitting .366-17-76 and sparked Grayson to an undefeated record in post-season play.

LSU-Eunice Wins D-II Crown

--LSU-Eunice (52-12) won its third NJCAA Division II title in five years by defeating No. 1-ranked Lenoir (N.C.) CC 17-5 in the deciding game, going undefeated in the eight-team tournament, played in Millington, Tenn. Bengals right fielder Perry Smith, the tournament MVP, went 4-for-4 with two doubles and five RBIs in the clinching game. LSU-Eunice also run-ruled Lenoir, 13-3, earlier in the tournament.

Western Oklahoma State (52-12) was eliminated from the tournament in two straight games, without freshman outfielder Juan Carlos Perez getting the home run he needed to equal the junior college single-season record of 38. He finished with 37, one short of the mark set by Seminole State (Okla.) catcher Kade Johnson in 1999. Perez, who was a 13^th-round pick of the Giants, set D-II records for homers and RBIs (102), while batting .465 with 29 stolen bases.

--Joliet (Ill.) won the NJCAA Division III national championship, getting a five-hit, 9-0 shutout in the deciding game from sophomore righthander Dillon Roark, his second win of the tournament. Roark, the tournament MVP, went 2-0, 0.00 with 18 strikeouts in 14 innings to finish the year at 12-1. The Wolves (49-11) won the eight-team tournament, played in Tyler, Texas, in four straight games.

Joliet outfielder Brandon Howard went 9-for-18 with a tournament-leading 11 RBIs. He also was selected the D-III player of the year, batting .466-5-60 with 26 doubles and a D-III record 105 hits.

--Sierra JC won the 2008 California state title, rallying from a loss earlier in the day to defeat Southwestern 6-2 in the deciding game as righthanders Cameron Ray and Josh Crockett combined on a four-hitter. Ray, the Final Four MVP, worked the first 5 1/3 innings on two day’s rest, walking none and striking out three, to push his record to 12-3 on the year. He went 4-0, 1.23 as Sierra went 8-2 in post-season play. Crockett saved his 10^th game of the season.

Sierra outfielder Logan Lotti, an Oregon State recruit, hit .404-15-64 on the season for Sierra, which set a school record for wins while going 39-15.

--Edmonds (Wash.) CC won its seventh Northwest Community College Athletic Association crown since 1980 by defeating nine-time champion Lower Columbia (Wash.) twice on the final day, 4-3 in 13 innings and 6-4.

JUCO NOTEBOOK

--Seminole State (Okla.) sophomore catcher Joe Patterson was named the NJCAA Division I player of the year, hitting .428 with 28 homers and Division I-leading 95 RBIs. His home run total was second to Walters State freshman DH Kyle Koeneman, who hit 29. Patterson has committed to Texas A&M.

--California had the most junior college players drafted this year, with 55, compared to 45 for Florida. But Florida’s Miami-Dade CC had more players drafted than any junior college, with eight. Chipola, Walters State and St. Petersburg (Fla.) all had six, while Palm Beach (Fla.) and Southern Nevada chipped in with five apiece.