ELON ? The leading hitter on the Elon University baseball team will stay with the Phoenix for his season senior despite being selected in last week?s draft.
A pitcher continuing to try to return to form after surgery said he?ll sign a professional contract today.
That?s the immediate fallout from the draft for Elon, which has been a regular Southern Conference contender.
Catcher Alex Swim, who was selected in the 36th round of the draft, said he informed scouts that he would be playing his senior season for Elon in 2013.
Meanwhile, pitcher Jim Stokes, who has two seasons of eligibility remaining, is taking an offer from the Cleveland Indians, who picked him in the 22nd round.
Swim, who batted .357 this year, was taken by the St. Louis Cardinals. He had been contacted earlier in the draft process by other organizations.
?I told them basically not to waste a pick,? Swim said Thursday. ?It?s still an honor to get drafted and to know that somebody is willing to pay you to play with their team.?
Swim was behind the plate for most of Elon?s games during the past season, when he compiled a 25-game hitting streak. He ranks ninth in school history with 222 career hits through three seasons as he has posted a .316 career batting average.
?He had a plan and a number and he stuck to it,? Elon coach Mike Kennedy said of Swim?s outlook on the draft. ?He?ll have a chance to play pro ball. Sometimes there are certain situations and it can be best to stay in college. It?s good to see a kid not give in to the pressure (to turn pro).?
Swim, who played in the Cape Cod League in 2011, is bypassing summer leagues this year. That should allow his back, which was the source of some discomfort late in the season, time to rest. The player from Greensboro also said family factors weighed in his decision to remain at Elon for another year.
?It?s best to stay,? he said after working with the youth baseball camp this week at Latham Park on campus. ?There?s always next year.?
Stokes, a right-hander, is about 15 months removed from Tommy John surgery and he struggled at times in 2012 for the Phoenix after taking a redshirt season in 2011. He posted a 1-3 record and 7.57 earned run average in what became a limited role.
?After the season, I didn?t know what to expect going into the draft,? Stokes said.
Still, scouts came to watch Stokes and had seen enough in 2010, when he was a freshman, that drew their attention.
?I definitely didn?t like to have the season I had,? Stokes said. ?Cleveland obviously sees something in me. This is a good time for me to start my professional career.?
Kennedy described Stokes, who also worked at the youth camp, as a pitcher with a good arm and a player drafted on potential who could turn out to be a steal for the Indians. ?Hopefully with some pro pitching coaching, they?ll figure out some things that click with him,? the coach said.
Stokes, 21, has been told he?ll be assigned to the Mahoning Valley Scrappers of the Class A New York-Penn League. He expects to begin as a reliever.
Compared to many recent seasons, the Phoenix had a relatively low number of draft-eligible players.
?Anytime guys are getting drafted, I?m a firm believer it helps your program,? Kennedy said. ?It?s what we tell kids when we?re (recruiting them) that we have a plan.?
Elon had one signee from the incoming class of freshmen drafted. That was Tyler Manez, a 6-foot-3 left-handed pitcher from Plainedge High School in North Massapequa, N.Y. He went to the Houston Astros with the first pick of the 32nd round, though so far Elon coaches are expecting that he?ll stick with the college route.
--?Elon outfielder Niko Fraser, a three-year starter who missed most of the latter half of the 2012 season with a concussion and its ensuing complications, has been cleared to resume regular workouts after testing this week. He?ll be a senior in 2013.
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