By Pete Cava
PBR Indiana Correspondent

Thirty-one players with Indiana ties were selected during the Major League Baseball draft, June 5-7.  Four were taken on the first day, including first-round picks Kyle Schwarber and Kyle Freeland.  Schwarber is a catcher from Indiana University, and Freeland is a University of Evansville left-handed pitcher.  

Three more were taken on Friday, June 6, and on Saturday, 24 were selected.  Twenty-six of the players were drafted from the college ranks, while five are high school athletes.  

Five IU players went in the draft, including Schwarber, Sam Travis (1B), Dustin DeMuth (3B), Joey DeNato (LHP) and Jake Kelzer (RHP). 

Three apiece were selected from Evansville (Freeland, C Kyle Pollock and RHP Sam Johns) and Ball State (RHP T.J. Weir, OF Sean Godfrey, LHP Nestor Bautista), while two each were taken from Notre Dame (RHPs Pat Connaughton and Donnie Hissa), Indiana State (SS Tyler Wampler, C Mike Fitzgerald) and Purdue (C Sean McHugh, LHP Jordan Minch).  

Butler (LHP Eric Stout) and Valparaiso (RHP Karch Kowlaczk) also had players go in the draft. 

Seven Indiana high school graduates who played for out-of-state colleges were selected, including Kentucky LHP A.J. Reed (Terre Haute South), Texas LHP Dillon Peters (Cathedral), Louisville RHP Jared Ruxer (Lawrence Central), Kentucky 2B Max Kuhn (Zionsville), Liberty RHP Ashton Perritt (Whiteland Community), Vanderbilt LHP Jared Miller (Avon) and Texas Christian OF Jerrick Suiter (Valparaiso).     

The preps are RHP Brandon Murray (Hobart), OF Logan Sowers (McCutcheon), LHP Andrew Sykes (Valparaiso), OF Larry Crisler (Bishop Noll) and SS Garrett Christman (Noblesville).  Sowers and Crisler are IU commits, while Christman is a Butler recruit.  Murray signed with South Carolina, while Sykes committed to Heartland Community College in Normal, Ill. 

Sixteen of the drafted players were born in Indiana.  Indianapolis topped the list with five (Peters, Ruxer, Perritt, McHugh, Godfrey), followed by Terre Haute (Reed, Wampler), Hobart (Suiter, Murray) and Munster (Minch, Sykes) with two apiece.  The rest are natives of Merrillville (DeMuth), Kokomo (Weir), Shelbyville (Pollock), Bloomington (Kelzer) and Gary (Crisler).   

Nineteen big league teams selected players with Indiana connections, topped by the Royals (Stout, Pollock, Sykes), Padres (Weir, Fitzgerald, Sowers), Braves (Perritt, Godfrey, Crisler) and Phillies (McHugh, DeNato, Murray) with three each.  The Cubs (Schwarber, Minch), Brewers (DeMuth, Hissa), Marlins (Peters, Bautista) and Dodgers (Wampler, Kowalczyk) took two apiece.  

The other clubs were the Rockies (Freeland), Astros (Reed), Red Sox (Travis), Orioles (Connaughton), Diamondbacks (Miller), Angels (Ruxer), Athletics (Kuhn), Yankees (Kelzer), Pirates (Suiter), Nationals (Johns) and Giants (Christman) 

Six of the players who attended Indiana high schools had been drafted previously, but did not sign.  DeMuth was an eighth-round pick by the Twins last year, but he opted to return to IU for his senior year.  Peters (Indians, 20^th round), Kuhn (Athletics, 24^th round), Reed (Mets, 25^th round), Ruxer (Indians, 29^th round) and Suiter (Blue Jays, 35^th round) were all drafted out of high school in 2011, but accepted college scholarships instead.     

Facts ‘n’ Figures:  He was drafted by the Cubs, but Kyle Schwarber grew up rooting for the Reds.  Schwarber, who led IU to a pair of Big Ten titles and a berth in the 2013 College World Series, played for the USA national team last summer.

Kyle Freeland, drafted by the Rockies, grew up in Denver.  In 2011 he was drafted by the Phillies in the 35^th round.

A.J. Reed, a pitcher-first baseman, is one of the nation’s top two-way players in the country and a strong candidate for 2014 College Player of the Year honors.

Sam Travis, drafted by the Reds in the 40^th round in 2011, teamed with Schwarber on the USA national team in 2013.

Pat Connaughton, who was drafted in 2011 by the Padres in the 38^th-round, is also a basketball standout at Notre Dame.   

Dustin DeMuth lettered in baseball, basketball and football at LaPorte High School. 

Dillon Peters, who went 7-3 with a 2.13 ERA for the Longhorns this year, was shut down after May 12 due to an elbow injury.

Jared Miller, majoring in interdisciplinary studies at Vanderbilt with a minor in Spanish, says if he wasn’t an athlete, he’d be a chef or baker.  The 6-7, 240-pounder can walk on his hands.

Jared Ruxer, who earned All-State, All-Conference and All-County honors at Lawrence Central, was the Big East Conference Rookie of the Year in 2012.  

As a prep basketball player, Eric Stout was a state finalist in the Illinois High School Association 3-point shooting championships.

Max Kuhn, drafted twice by the same team (A’s in 2011 and 2014), is the older brother of Ohio State infielder Troy Kuhn. 

As a senior at Kokomo High School, T.J. Weir was the North Central Conference athlete of the year.  He has a twin sister, Whitney.

Tyler Wampler threw three no-hitters at West Vigo High School, where he set a record for career wins with 32.

Ashton Perritt was the Johnson County Player of the year in 2010 and 2011 at Whiteland Community High School, where he also starred in football.

Although Indianapolis native Sean McHugh attended high school in Leawood, Kansas, he comes from a Boilermaker family.  His parents and two brothers are also Purdue alums.   

The 2011 San Diego County Player of the Year in 2011, Joey DeNato threw a complete-game shutout for IU against Louisville in the 2013 College World Series.

Kyle Pollock earned five letters at Westerville (Ohio) Central High School – three in baseball, two in hockey.  

Donnie Hissa pitched out of the bullpen during his first two years at Notre Dame and made his first start as a junior.  He also starred in basketball and football as a prep. 

In high school, Jake Kelzer twice helped Bloomington South to runner-up finishes in the state swimming championships.  He also competed for the IU swim team.

Sean Godfrey helped New Albany High School to back-to-back Conference and sectional titles and batted .486 as a senior.

A standout baseball, basketball and football player at Valparaiso High School, Jerrick Suiter is majoring in deaf education at TCU.

Mike Fitzgerald’s father, also named Mike, was selected by the St. Louis Cardinals in the secondary phase of the 1984 draft.  The elder Fitzgerald was a catcher-outfielder for Middle Georgia Junior College.

Brandon Murray, the first Indiana prep taken in this year’s draft, had just helped Hobart to a win in a regional semifinal when he got the news that the Phillies had selected him.  The right-hander says he plans to attend South Carolina this fall.   

Logan Sowers, who heard from all 30 teams over the winter, splans to honor his commitment to IU.

Sam Johns, who grew up in suburban St. Louis, played baseball for four years and soccer for two seasons at Civic Memorial High School in Bethalto, Ill. 

Nestor Bautista graduated from New York City’s George Washington High School, the alma mater of  Hall of Fame 2B Rod Carew and OF Manny Ramirez, who played for five big league clubs from 1993-2011.

Jordan Minch, drafted by the Cubs, lists Wrigley Field as his favorite big league ballpark. 

Andrew Sykes is one of three Indiana preps to commit to Heartland CC for next year.  The others are RHP Max Gray (Lawrence North), 1B Hunter Cook (Pendleton Heights) and Myles Hahn (McCutcheon).

A two-sport star at Bishop Noll, Larry Crisler kept a baseball glove in his locker during basketball season.

Garrett Christman, who plans to attend Butler this fall, is the son of San Francisco Giants scout Kevin Christman. 

Karch Kowlczyk, a biology and chemistry major at Valparaiso University, sat out the 2012 season following elbow surgery. 

The complete list of players with Indiana ties selected in the 2014 draft

Round:  1.  No.:  4.  Team:   Chicago Cubs.  Player:  Kyle Schwarber.  

Position:  C.  School:  Indiana University.  Resides:  Middletown, Ohio.   

B/T:  L/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-0/240.  Born:  March 5, 1993, Cincinnati, Ohio. 

Full name:  Kyle Joseph Schwarber. 

High School:  Middletown (Ohio) High School.     

Round:  1.  No.:  8.  Team:   Colorado Rockies.  Player:  Kyle Freeland. 

Position:  LHP.  School:  University of Evansville.  Resides:  Denver, Colorado.   

B/T:  L/L.  Ht./Wt.:  6-4/190.  Born:  May 14, 1993, Denver, Colorado. 

Full name:  Kyle Richard Freeland. 

High School:  Thomas Jefferson HS (Denver, Colorado).

Round:  2.  No.:  42.  Team:   Houston Astros.  Player:  A.J. Reed. 

Position:  1B.  School:  University of Kentucky.  Resides:  Terre Haute, Indiana.   

B/T:  L/L.  Ht./Wt.:  6-4/240. Born:  May 10, 1993, Terre Haute, Indiana. 

Full name:  Andrew Joseph Reed. 

High School:  Terre Haute (Indiana) South High School.

 

Round:  2.  No.:  67.  Team:   Boston Red Sox.  Player:  Sam Travis.  

Position:  1B.  School:  Indiana University.  Resides:  Orland Park, Illinois.   

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-0/210.  Born:  August 27, 1993, Oak Lawn, Illinois. 

Full name:  Samuel John Travis. 

High School:  Providence Catholic High School (Orland Park, Illinois).

 

Round:  4.  No.:  121.  Team:   Baltimore Orioles.  Player:  Pat Connaughton.  

Position:  RHP.  School:  University of Notre Dame.  Resides:  Arlington, Massachusetts.   

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-5/214.  Born:  January 6, 1993, Arlington, Massachusetts. 

Full name:  Patrick Bergin Connaughton. 

High School:  St. John’s Preparatory School (Danvers, Massachusetts).

 

Round:  5.  No.:  146.  Team:   Milwaukee Brewers.  Player:  Dustin DeMuth.  

Position:  3B.  School:  Indiana University.  Resides:  LaPorte, Indiana.   

B/T:  L/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-3/215.  Born:  July 30, 1991, Merrillville, Indiana. 

Full name:  Dustin William DeMuth. 

High School:  LaPorte (Indiana) High School. 

 

Round:  10.  No.:  287.  Team:   Miami Marlins.  Player:  Dillon Peters.  

Position:  LHP.  School:  University of Texas.  Resides:  Fishers, Indiana. 

B/T:  L/L.  Ht./Wt.:  5-11/212.  Born:  August 31, 1992, Indianapolis, Indiana. 

Full name:  Dillon James Peters. 

High School:  Cathedral High School (Indianapolis, Indiana). 

 

Round:  11.  No.:  330.  Team:   Arizona Diamondbacks.  Player:  Jared Miller.  

Position:  LHP.  School:  Vanderbilt University.  Resides:  Avon, Indiana. 

B/T:  L/L.  Ht./Wt.:  6-7/240.  Born:  August 21, 1993, Columbus, Ohio.  

Full name:  Jared Raymond Miller. 

High School:  Avon (Indiana) High School.

 

Round:  12.  No.:  359.  Team:   Los Angeles Angels.  Player:  Jared Ruxer.  

Position:  RHP.  School:  University of Louisville.  Resides:  Indianapolis, Indiana. 

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-3/195.  Born:  July 29, 1992, Indianapolis, Indiana. 

Full name:  Jared James Ruxer. 

High School:  Lawrence Central High School (Indianapolis, Indiana).

 

Round:  13.  No.:  393.  Team:   Kansas City Royals.  Player:  Eric Stout.  

Position:  LHP.  School:  Butler University.  Resides:  Wheaton, Illinois. 

B/T:  L/L.  Ht./Wt.:  6-3/185.  Born:  March 27, 1993, Chicago, Illinois. 

Full name:  Eric Joseph Stout. 

High School:  St. Francis High School (Wheaton, Illinois).

 

Round:  13.  No.:  402.  Team:   Oakland Athletics.  Player:  Max Kuhn.  

Position:  2B.  School:  University of Kentucky.  Resides:  Zionsville, Indiana. 

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  5-11/205.  Born:  September 10, 1992, Havelock, North Carolina  

Full name:  Robert Maxwell Kuhn. 

High School:  Zionsville (Indiana) High School.

 

Round:  17.  No.:  507.  Team:   San Diego Padres.  Player:  T.J. Weir.  

Position:  RHP.  School:  Ball State University.  Resides:  Kokomo, Indiana. 

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-0/195.  Born:  September 15, 1991, Kokomo, Indiana.  

Full name:  Tyler Jordan Weir. 

High School:  Kokomo (Indiana) High School.

 

Round:  17.  No.:  519.  Team:   Los Angeles Dodgers.  Player:  Tyler Wampler.  

Position:  SS.  School:  Indiana State University.  Resides:  Terre Haute, Indiana. 

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-0/175.  Born:  September 11, 1991, Terre Haute, Indiana.  

Full name:  David Tyler Wampler. 

High School:  Terre Haute (Indiana) West Vigo High School.

 

Round:  17.  No.:  523.  Team:   Atlanta Braves.  Player:  Ashton Perritt.  

Position:  RHP.  School:  Liberty University.  Resides:  Whiteland, Indiana. 

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-3/195.  Born:  September 8, 1992, Indianapolis, Indiana.  

Full name:  Ashton Taylor Perritt. 

High School:  Whiteland (Indiana) Community High School.

 

Round:  18.  No.:  532.  Team:   Philadelphia Phillies.  Player:  Sean McHugh.  

Position:  C.  School:  Purdue University.  Resides:  Leawood, Kansas. 

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  5-11/195.  Born:  April 19, 1992, Indianapolis, Indiana.  

Full name:  Sean Kent McHugh. 

High School:  Blue Valley High School (Leawood, Kansas). 

 

Round:  19.  No.:  562.  Team:   Philadelphia Phillies.  Player:  Joey DeNato.  

Position:  LHP.  School:  Indiana University.  Resides:  San Diego, California. 

B/T:  L/L.  Ht./Wt.:  5-10/175.  Born:  March 17, 1992, San Diego, California.  

Full name:  Joseph Kenneth DeNato.   

High School:  Torrey Pines High School (San Diego, California).   

 

Round:  20.  No.:  603.  Team:   Kansas City Royals.  Player:  Kyle Pollock.  

Position:  C.  School:  University of Evansville.  Resides:  Clinton, Ohio. 

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  5-11/205.  Born:  August 15, 1992, Shelbyville, Indiana.     

Full name:  Kyle James Pollock.   

High School:  Westerville (Ohio) Central High School.     

 

Round:  21.  No.:  626.  Team:   Milwaukee Brewers.  Player:  Donnie Hissa.  

Position:  RHP.  School:  University of Notre Dame.  Resides:  Iron River, Wisconsin. 

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-7/236.  Born:  January 9, 1992, Ashland, Wisconsin.     

Full name:  Donald Allen Hissa.    

High School:  Maple (Wisconsin) Northwestern High School.

 

Round:  22.  No.:  662.  Team:   New York Yankees.  Player:  Jake Kelzer.  

Position:  RHP.  School:  Indiana University.  Resides:  Bloomington, Indiana. 

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-7/235.  Born:  June 30, 1993, Bloomington, Indiana.     

Full name:  Jacob Thomas Kelzer.   

High School:  Bloomington (Indiana) South High School.

 

Round:  22.  No.:  673.  Team:   Atlanta Braves.  Player:  Sean Godfrey.  

Position:  OF.  School:  Ball State University.  Resides:  New Albany, Indiana. 

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-2/185.  Born:  January 2, 1992, Indianapolis, Indiana.     

Full name:  Sean Christopher Godfrey.   

High School:  New Albany (Indiana) High School.

 

Round:  26.  No.:  791.  Team:   Pittsburgh Pirates.  Player:  Jerrick Suiter.  

Position:  OF.  School:  Texas Christian University.  Resides:  Valparaiso, Indiana. 

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-4/235.  Born:  March 4, 1993, Hobart, Indiana.     

Full name:  Jerrick Lee Suiter.      

High School:  Valparaiso (Indiana) High School.

 

Round:  27.  No.:  807.  Team:   San Diego Padres.  Player:  Mike Fitzgerald.  

Position:  C.  School:  Indiana State University.  Resides:  Rochester, Illinois. 

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-1/210.  Born:  May 26, 1991, Springfield, Illinois.     

Full name:  Mike Patrick Fitzgerald.      

High School/Junior College:  Rochester (Illinois) High School;  Lincoln Land Community College.

 

Round:  30.  No.:  893.  Team:  Philadelphia Phillies.   Player:  Brandon Murray.    

Position:  RHP.  School:  Hobart (Indiana) High School.  Resides:  Hobart, Indiana.   

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-3/200.  Born:  March 13, 1996, Hobart, Indiana.   

Full name:  Brandon Nicholas Murray.        

College Commitment:  University of South Carolina.                                                                              

 

Round:  31.  No.:  927.  Team:  San Diego Padres.   Player:  Logan Sowers.    

Position:  OF.  School:  McCutcheon High School (Lafayette, Ind.).  Resides:  Lafayette, Ind.   

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-4/210.  Born:  January 11, 1996, Royal Oak, Michigan. 

Full name:  Logan Michael Sowers.        

College Commitment:  Indiana University.                                                                              

 

Round:  31.  No.:  934.  Team:  Washington Nationals.  Player:  Sam Johns.  

Position:  RHP.  School:  University of Evansville.  Resides:  Bethalto, Illinois. 

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-3/210.  Born:  July 12, 1991, Alton, Illinois.     

Full name:  Samuel Scott Johns.      

High School:  Civic Memorial High School (Bethalto, Illinois).

 

Round:  31.  No.:  947.  Team:  Miami Marlins.  Player:  Nestor Bautista.  

Position:  LHP.  School:  Ball State University.  Resides:  New York, New York.   

B/T:  L/L.  Ht./Wt.:  6-3/190.  Born:  May 13, 1992, New York, New York.     

Full name:  Nestor Andres Bautista.      

High School:  George Washington High School (New York, New York).

 

Round:  35.  No.:  1,039.  Team:  Chicago Cubs.  Player:  Jordan Minch.  

Position:  LHP.  School:  Purdue University.  Resides:  Highland, Indiana.   

B/T:  L/L.  Ht./Wt.:  6-3/190.  Born:  July 16, 1993, Munster, Indiana.     

Full name:  Jordan Michael Minch.      

High School:  Highland (Indiana) High School.

 

Round:  35.  No.:  1,053.  Team:  Kansas City Royals.   Player:  Andrew Sykes.    

Position:  LHP.  School:  Valparaiso (Indiana) High School.  Resides:  Valparaiso, Indiana.   

B/T:  L/L.  Ht./Wt.:  6-1/188.  Born:  July 20, 1995, Munster, Indiana.    

Full name:  Andrew David Sykes.        

College Commitment:  Heartland Community College (Normal, Illinois).

 

Round:  36.  No.:  1,093.  Team:  Atlanta Braves.   Player:  Larry Crisler.    

Position:  OF.  School:  Bishop Noll Institute (Hammond, Indiana).  Resides:  Gary, Indiana.   

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-2/195.  Born:  September 14, 1995, Gary, Indiana. 

Full name:  Larry Darnell Crisler.        

College Commitment:  Indiana University.

 

Round:  37.  No.:  1,108.  Team:  San Francisco Giants.   Player:  Garrett Christman.    

Position:  SS.  School:  Noblesville (Indiana) High School.  Resides:  Noblesville, Indiana.   

B/T:  L/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-2/180.  Born:  January 6, 1996, San Jose, California.  

Full name:  Garrett Boyd Christman.        

College Commitment:  Butler University.

 

Round:  37.  No.:  1,119.  Team:  Los Angeles Dodgers.   Player:  Karch Kowalczyk.    

Position:  RHP.  School:  Valparaiso University.  Resides:  Peru, Illinois.   

B/T:  R/R.  Ht./Wt.:  6-2/220.  Born:  March 31, 1991, Peru, Illinois. 

Full name:  Karch William Kowalczyk.