Rogers pitches after all in state championship

[Pudster13]

High School SP Mark Rogers from Maine it is.

[colbyjack]

We can post all picks in this thread if people wouldn't mind replying instead of having 50 different thread of the 50 different picks.

 

Also, just so people know, I can't access the chat room, or at least I can't add any thoughts. The only one that got through was the /.

 

I almost crapped my pants when I saw Dustin Pedroia #2 to the Tigers http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif .

[recte44]

Thought maybe the Rogers scouting report might be helpful....

 

MARK ROGERS MT ARARAT SCHOOL RHP R/R 6'2" 205 1986-01-30 HS 56K | 350K

COMMENT: ROOM TO ADD MORE WEIGHT. BABY-FACED. MEDIUM-WIDE, SLOPED SHOULDERS. ESPECIALLY LONG ARMS. LONG TORSO. HIGH REAR. FULL WINDUP, HIGH 3/4 TO 3/4 ARM SLOT. DOES IT EASY. WHIP ARM. GOOD EXTENTION. MOST FB 91-92, LIKES TO CUT TO LHH. POTENTIAL HAMMER CB, LONG & SHORT, BOTH TIGHT. CIRCLE CHANGE SINKS WHEN DOWN. HAS AN IDEA HOW TO PITCH. ONE OF BEST HS PITCHING PROSPECTS SEEN IN 15 YR SCOUTING. TOP OF ML STAFF POTENTIAL.

[jwaltz]

That Baby Face should help him. In all seriousness I like his arm and polish. Competition level in Maine is a concern though.

[bullox]

Mark Rogers

Mt. Ararat (Maine), RHP, 6-2, 200

 

Rogers was named the Gatorade National Player of the Year on June 3 after finishing the regular season 7-0 with a 0.14 ERA while striking out 125 and walking just 10 in 49 innings. Rogers, who?s rated the No. 22 overall prospect in the Class of 2004, allowed just one earned run all season and held opponents to a .045 batting average. Rogers, whose fastball has been clocked as high as 98 mph, recorded consecutive 20-strikeouts games this season.

[Nefaste]

mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/ml.../index.jsp

 

under the heading "Sights & Sounds" there's a Rogers pre-draft interview

[BuckyTuba]

i thought i saw his final stats @ 0.16 ERA, 8-0 in the JS. they said something like his fastball gets up to 98mph...

 

here's the story from the JS:

www.jsonline.com/sports/b...234787.asp

 

anyways, seems like another top prospect nabbed, hopefully he pans out. does they look at him as a closer, or more of a starter role?

[RyDogg66]

I can't argue with the pick but I think we will regret not taking Bailey.

[bjkrautk]

Rogers on MLB Radio right now!

 

---------------

 

When asked what his best pitch is:

 

"Strike one"

 

Hard not to like the kid with answers like that.

[batman]

Great interview... wish I would have recorded it. He sounds like a really smart dude, very professional and mature, and that little 3 minute interview just made me feel a lot better about the choice.

 

You da' man, Mark Rogers!

 

~Bill

[nikip43]

im sure everyone has something to say about the MLB.com interview but here are my notes...

 

feelings as of now...

I was excited, a feeling of disbelief

little expectations heading into the draft, he enjoyed the whole thing and wanted to remain optiomistic

 

reflections on baseball in the northeast...

it takes a little extra work, you can't get outside year long. it means if you want to make it you've got to work that much harder

you've got to go into the gym when there is 10 inches of snow on the ground. thats what names NE ballplayers that good, self discipline of working on your game when the weather is rough.

 

his pitches....

worked on his circle change over the winter. his best pitch is strike one (joking). his out pitch is his curveball, his fast ball has been consistant and his last 5 games has him going between 93-96.

 

any brewer conversations.....

mostly impersonal conversations by Milwaukee. Just congrats. Lot of young players developing who could contend in the next few years.

 

being the highest drafted HS pitcher....

compliment to be highest drafted HS pitcher. He thinks he can do well. Milwaukee put a lot of faith into him and he wants to go out and proove to them that they made the right decision, hes got a lot of work ahead of him and a lot to learn...Milwaukee is where he wants to learn.

 

 

======================

analyst on the draft

 

Mark Rogers has decided that Milwaukee has taken their minor league system to one of the least talented to one of the most talented under Jack Z

 

first 5 rounds has shown that they are going in the right direction

 

2nd rounder can throw 96 and 3rd rounder has similar velocity.

 

Very agressive building their system and adding a lot of high velocity arms this year

[igor67]

It's worth noting that Rogers only got 38 innings in this year, so if he signs in a timely fashion he'd have no reason not to get some serious pitching in this year.

[Vgmastr]

I found this on another messageboard. It's someone who plays for an opposing Maine HS. Kind of interesting.

 

Quote:

---

On that website you had with the projected draft, I actually faced Mark Rogers, the one projected to go to the Royals. I faced him last year in our regional playoffs, and he kicked our [censored]. He hit 95 once on the gun, and that was when he was a junior last year. He hit 97 against another team this year, in a game where he threw a 5 inning, 15 strikeout perfect game where his team 10 run ruled the other. He is absolutely disgusting. You guys wouldn't believe how hard he throws for a high schooler, and he has a pretty good curve ball to that kept us WAY in front of him. Trust me, he'll be something. At his last game, he had a scout from every major league team watching him pitch. He actually only gave up one earned run this year, and that was against the team that eliminated us two days ago from the playoffs. I guarantee you guys will see him in the majors someday barring any injury.

 

Atleast I can say I struck out against a potential major leaguer.

---

[danzig6767]

I like the pick,i have a good vibe about him.Then again it's based on absolutely nothing since i've yet to see him throw a pitch.How's that for a big time endorsement??

[scoop53714]

I like the pick too. Like I said before, the only guy rumored that I didnt want was Neimann. Passing Baily and Drew seems a bit wierd but I think Rogers might end up to be an Ace.

[Ben1752]

I dont know how long High School first rounders are left in rookie ball. Any chance he could get the Snappers start at Miller Park?

[bullox]

Quote:

---

Then again it's based on absolutely nothing since i've yet to see him throw a pitch.

---

 

Go to MLB.com. They have a video of him throwing to High School kids. Not a whole lot of control on his breaking ball. He almost took a kids head off with one of them. The ump seems to give him quite a bit of the plate also. Maybe he had early dinner reservations after the game, I don't know.

 

I like the big difference in velocity between his curve and his hard stuff. Mid 90s to mid 70s.

[Al the Thinking Man]

Few HS players make it out of rookie ball that first year. Even less of a chance for a pitcher to do so.

[homer]

Quote:

---

It's worth noting that Rogers only got 38 innings in this year, so if he signs in a timely fashion he'd have no reason not to get some serious pitching in this year.

---

 

On Milwaukee TV he was quoted as saying, "I just want to play baseball. It's not about the money". The story went on to say he could be signed and throwing in AZ as early as next week.

[colbyjack]

I've noted before that Rogers could easily log 50 innings or so at Helena, or Arizona, this summer after he signs. That doesn't mean that the Brewers will let him throw more than 60-70 pitches in an outing, but he should have 2 solid months pitching for one of our rookie level teams. I'm assuming it will be Helena, as I wouldn't be too fond of sending that high of a pick to our lowest level. If he's good enough to be drafted as high as he was, he should be at Helena.

 

Someone else noted it on another thread, but our pitching staff at Helena should have some exciting names to follow. Gallardo is another guy that could be placed there, and he too could be a relatively quick sign (Texas Chrisitian isn't expected to pose that much of a signing threat).

 

Also, just a reminder, but Jim Powell more than likely will have Rogers on for his pre-game interview since there was no game today. Be sure to tune in, although as always the interview will likely be archived on their website.

[MassBrew]

From Maine Today:

 

Is it worth risking future for state title?

 

If the coming years go as Mark Rogers hopes, he'll call some or all of the following cities home: Maryvale, Arizona. Helena, Montana. Beloit, Wisconsin. Adelanto, California. Hunstville, Alabama. Indianapolis.

 

At the end of this moving van tour across America is Miller Park in Milwaukee.

 

Rogers, the Mt. Ararat High School pitching phenom, was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday, the fifth overall pick in the major league baseball draft. Monday night, Rogers spent a few minutes talking to the Milwaukee media. After he signs, there might be a quick trip to Milwaukee before heading off to rookie league in Arizona, and maybe a quick trip to the broadcast booth to say hello to everyone listening to a Brewers game.

 

Before Rogers, the Gatorade National High School Baseball Player of the Year, can become a professional baseball player, he has a senior season to complete for Mt. Ararat. At most, that means he has two more games, but those games raise big questions for the fifth overall pick and his father, Mt. Ararat coach Craig Rogers, need to answer.

 

Does he pitch again for Mt. Ararat? Should Rogers pitch again for Mt. Ararat?

 

As of Monday night, Rogers wasn't sure if he'd take the mound against Brewer High School in tonight's regional final at Mansfield Stadium in Bangor.

 

"We've got two other guys who can throw (tonight)," he said. "Hopefully we can get in there and win with whoever's pitching."

 

Part of it can be considered gamesmanship, not tipping Brewer off to anything. Let 'em wonder until they see who's throwing warmup tosses in the bullpen. Part of it has to be that Rogers knows that every time he throws a pitch, it will affect the rest of his life.

 

Rogers' numbers this season are staggering. Nine wins. One hundred and 42 strikeouts and a measly 10 walks in 56 innings. An earned run average of 0.16. He struck out 20 hitters in back-to-back games, then struck out 22 in another outing. Now, Rogers is on the verge of being paid to throw a baseball, and the financial numbers involved are even more eye-popping.

 

As the fifth overall pick, it's possible that Rogers could sign for $2 million. All season long, Rogers has thrown with around a week's rest between starts. He pitched the Eagles' 4-0 win over Hampden Academy last Friday. If he pitches tonight's regional final against Brewer, that gives him three days rest.

 

That's plenty of time for the average high school pitcher. Is it plenty of time for a kid with millions at stake? If Rogers does take the mound tonight, and feels a twinge in his elbow or shoulder, what happens with the Brewers? It's doubtful they would give up on a first-round pick, but would the first-round money still be there?

 

Rogers said on Monday that right now, Mt. Ararat baseball is his first priority. Does Rogers owe it to teammates who have been along for this ride to pitch? For most of the Eagles, a state championship would be the pinnacle of their baseball careers.

 

Does anyone doubt that Rogers on the hill gives them their best chance at the title?

 

Would you call Rogers selfish if he didn't pitch? Would you call him foolish if he did? The money isn't a wish on the horizon anymore, it's there. So are teammates looking for their ace to lead them to a title.

 

On the happiest day of his life, Mark Rogers has no right or wrong answers. No matter what he does and doesn't, Rogers will be second-guessed over and over. Welcome to the pros.

 

Travis Lazarczyk -- 861-9242

 

tlazarczyk@centralmaine.com

[MassBrew]

More, same site:

 

Rogers chosen fifth in major league draft

PAUL BETIT, Staff Writer

 

ORRS ISLAND ? Mark Rogers won´t be hauling lobster traps this summer.

 

He´ll be too busy playing professional baseball.

 

The Milwaukee Brewers made Rogers, the hard-throwing right-handed pitcher from Mt. Ararat High in Topsham, the fifth pick in baseball´s annual draft for amateur players Monday.

 

Rogers´ family has fished for generations out of Harpswell. His selection by the Brewers capped a hectic spring, as scouts from dozens of major-league teams swarmed to each game he pitched.

 

"II really didn´t realize how stressful this has been," said Craig Rogers, Mark´s father and coach of the Mt. Ararat baseball team. "It´s been a gradual thing, but I can tell you right now . . . I´m just really tickled. I´m so happy."

 

Last week the Rogers family got an inkling the Brewers were considering making Mark their first pick in the draft for high school and college players.

 

"All of a sudden, instead of just showing up at the games, we were getting two or three phone calls in the middle of the week," Craig Rogers said, "and they were talking with Mark. Asking him about signability. Doing a personality check on him, little special tests he needed to take."

 

The Brewers apparently zeroed in on Rogers nearly four weeks ago.

 

"Our chief scout called me about a month ago after seeing Mark pitch and told me ?I think I just saw our No. 1 pick,? ? Milwaukee General Manager Doug Melvin said.

 

"(Our scouts) are confident he´s someone who wants to go out and play and work to get better. Hopefully, we´ll see him someday at the top of rotation here in Milwaukee."

 

Rogers said he´s excited about being selected by the Brewers.

 

"They have a good history about developing their players," he said. "Right now they have a lot of young guys in Triple- A on the edge of just breaking into the majors.

 

"(The Brewers) are people I want to get involved with and get on track to the big leagues."

 

Rogers is the first Maine high school player ever selected in first round.

 

In 1991, Mark O´Brien, a left-handed pitcher from Deering High in Portland, was taken in the fifth round by the Texas Rangers.

 

Billy Swift of South Portland was the second player taken in the 1984 draft, but that came after his senior year at the University of Maine. He signed with the Seattle Mariners.

 

During his 13-year career, Swift also pitched for the San Francisco Giants and Colorado Rockies.

 

Milwaukee has drafted Maine players before.

 

In 1997, the Brewers took Nick Caiazzo, a former Deering catcher, in the 45th round following his senior year at the University of Maine. In 2000, they took Lisbon High pitcher Jeremy Shorey in the 21st round.

 

Matt Kinney, a right-handed pitcher from Bangor, is in his fourth season as a major leaguer with the Brewers. In 1996 he was taken in the sixth round by the Boston Red Sox.

 

While in the minor leagues, Kinney was traded to the Minnesota Twins, who traded him to Milwaukee after bringing him to the majors.

 

The Brewers believe Rogers has what it takes. "Our scouts really liked his physical skills," Melvin said. "We think he has a great fastball and the makings or a great curveball. We just have to refine his skills."

 

Equally important to the Brewers in making Rogers their first selection in the 50-round draft was several aspects of his´ makeup.

 

"A lot of what (the scouts) liked about him are intangibles," Melvin said. "His aptitude. His athleticism. His competitiveness. His leadership qualities. We just think he´s able to adapt to what it takes to get to the big leagues."

 

After he signs, Rogers will be assigned to a rookie-league team in Maryvale, Ariz., Melvin said. But no negotiations can take place until his high school season ends.

 

"They can´t make any offers or say anything until then," Rogers said.

 

Mt. Ararat (17-1) is still competing for the Class A state championship. Tonight it plays Brewer for the Eastern Maine title at Mansfield Stadium in Bangor.

 

Rogers isn´t sure whether he´ll start tonight.

 

"We´ve got two other guys who can throw (tonight)," he said. "Hopefully we can get in there and win with whoever´s pitching."

 

If the Eagles win the regional title, they will advance to the state championship game Saturday against Deering or Portland at Gorham High.

 

"My first priority right now still is Mt. Ararat baseball," Rogers said, "and we´re going to try to win a state championship."

 

Staff Writer Paul Betit can be contacted at 725-8795 or at: pbetit@pressherald.com

[Al the Thinking Man]

I'd never dream of pitching for my HS again. I doubt I'd play SS either.

 

And, if I was another player, I'd understand completely. In fact, I'd tell him he was an idiot if he would.

[MassBrew]

And finally for now:

 

Waiting . . . waiting . . . waiting . . . YES!

STEVE SOLLOWAY, Staff Writer

 

Copyright © 2004 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.

 

ORRS ISLAND - After Craig Rogers asked for quiet, the only sound was the squeak of a squeeze toy held in the jaws of the family´s pet Pekingese.

 

One moment dragged slowly into the next. Two dozen people crowded into the Rogers´ family room held their breaths. Bodies tensed.

 

The voice on the speaker phone resumed. "Tampa Bay, with the fourth pick, selects Jeff Niemann of Rice University."

 

The squeeze toy squeaked. Champagne glasses sat empty on the kitchen table. No one moved.

 

"I hadn´t felt this way since two hours before my wedding when I put my tux on," Craig Rogers would say later. "I was a little weak-kneed that day, too."

 

Monday was draft day in baseball. The day major-league teams picked the amateur players they wanted to sign.

 

The day Mark Rogers´ life was put on hold until he learned which team wanted his signature on a contract worth a couple of million dollars or more.

 

He couldn´t sleep the night before. He tried not to think about Monday but the more he tried, the harder it was not to.

 

"It was what I didn´t know that was keeping me awake," said Rogers. "Which team was I going to?"

 

Elsewhere in the house, his father wrestled with his own anxiety before calling it a night.

 

"Being a lobsterman, I know when I´m tired physically. Emotionally, I had no idea what this was doing to me until it hit me.

 

"You can only sit on pins and needles for so long."

 

Dad is also the Mt. Ararat High baseball coach, which made the pins and needles that much sharper. The Eagles are two wins from a state championship.

 

Monday morning, around dawn, a ringing phone woke Craig Rogers. Someone in the media with another request for answers or an interview.

 

"I asked them to please call back later. I mean, it was 5:15."

 

Much later, an hour or so before the draft, Mark Rogers tried to get on the Internet. No go. The 18-year-old honor student, normally so poised, started to come a little undone.

 

The Internet was his link to the draft. Rogers ran to a neighbor´s. His mother followed.

 

At the Rogers´ home, more family members, friends and teammates started to arrive. The draft would be relayed from next door.

 

"The Milwaukee Brewers, with the fifth pick, select Mark Rogers . . ."

 

Cheering drowned out the rest. Never mind that the Brewers are a small- market franchise with a recent history of bad baseball. Mark Rogers was a top-five pick, a first-round pick.

 

His stock was rated blue chip. That´s what mattered.

 

Mark Rogers walked in through a back door. "Holy smoke," he said as he was passed from one embrace to another. "Oh man, holy smoke.

 

"This is definitely life-changing. All I´ve known is here."

 

The boys at the dock where the Rogers men load and unload their lobster boat had their perspective. Mark can keep lobstering for another 10 or 15 years with all the money he´ll get from baseball. Yes sir.

 

A few of his teammates stood off to the side, smiling.

 

"Mark has never been about me, me and I," said Chris Doherty, Mt. Ararat´s third baseman. "He´s tried hard not to let this affect the rest of us.

 

"But it has been fun playing in front of those big crowds. It made us all play better."

 

With each dominating performance, more fans found their way to Mt. Ararat baseball games until the crowds swelled to about 1,000. They came to see the phenom and wound up discovering a good team.

 

Monday afternoon, Doherty´s mind worked. Where could he find a dozen or more Milwaukee Brewers caps on short notice?

 

Might be fun for everyone to wear a Brewers cap before their next playoff game.

 

Brett Rogers watched everything. He is Mark´s big brother, maybe the only one in the house who "slept like a baby" the night before.

 

He´s a ballplayer and he would have given his right arm to be in his brother´s shoes. He has been his brother´s rock, grounding him, calming him.

 

"Whenever Mark needed him, Brett was there," said Craig Rogers. It´s what brothers do.

 

"I´d do this again but I´m glad it´s over," said Craig Rogers. "Maybe now I´ll get my wife back.

 

"She was the communicator, she was the one who knew all the scouts by name and which team they were with. I got the names but I didn´t always get the teams straight.

 

"You know moms. They´ll walk through fire for their kids. Stephanie did that."

 

The champagne glasses were filled, finally. Mark´s hands were empty, of course. Bob Neron, a friend, an assistant coach, raised his for a toast.

 

"Here´s to the long road ahead. Here´s to the best ballplayer to come out of these parts."

 

Staff Writer Steve Solloway can be contacted at 791-6412 or at: ssolloway@pressherald.com

[MassBrew]

See a video news report here while the link is active for another day or two.

 

It's from a couple of days prior to the draft. There's a Snickers commercial up front. Click on the link for the Gatorade Award winner -- you need Real Player on your PC.

 

Not the best informed announcer -- only a "90" MPH fastball -- kind of a fluff piece, but a chance to see Rogers in front of the camera...

 

There was a much better piece on this AM about his learning of the Brewer selection -- I'll try to track that down...

 

www.boston.com/news/necn/Sports/