The St. Louis Cardinals first-round draft choice, who might very well wind up in Batavia as a Muckdog, is a big guy from a small town with big ambitions.
Shelby Miller, from Brownwood, Texas, a town of 19,000 people, was the 19th overall pick in the annual MLB draft. His fastball has been clocked at 97 m.p.h. and he doesn't mind comparisons to Texas natives Roger Clemens and Nolan Ryan.
Those are some big shoes to fill.
The high school pitcher has been dubbed "a special kind of talent" who could fetch $3.5 million in his first contract.
The Cardinals second pick is a catcher out of the University of Southern California, Robert Stock.
Other selections in no particular order:
- Matt Adams
- Tyler Bighames
- Rick Racobaldo
- Virgil Hill (son, according to this story, of North Dakota boxing legend Virgil Hill, Sr.)
- Kyle Conley
- Jim Klocke
- Daniel Calhoun
Baseball America has a complete list of St. Louis draft picks.
Just because a player is drafted doesn't mean he will sign, or that he'll wind up in Batavia. The Cardinals also have a short-season affiliate in Johnson City, Tenn.
