MIAMI SHORES, Fla.—Barry players Manny Rodriguez and Dean Green were selected today in Major League Baseball’s Rule IV Draft.
Rodriguez, a right-handed pitcher, went in the 10th round (307 overall) to the Washington Nationals, while first baseman Green went one round later (347 overall) to the Detroit Tigers. Rodriguez became the highest drafted player in Barry history, going three picks higher than Yan Gomes who was selected 310 overall by the Blue Jays in 2009.
“It’s just a credit to the program when you can bring in guys like Manny and Dean,” Barry head coach Marc Pavao said. “Over the course of a 50-game schedule they are going to help you win some games, but it also helps raise the level of everyone around them.
“I’m proud of both of them. They’ve been tremendous role models for the younger players, great leaders on the team. We wish them well as they move on and look forward to following them up the ladder on the way to the majors.”
Rodriguez turned in one of the best seasons in program history. He went 7-3, including a pair of wins at the South Region Tournament beating Nova Southeastern 6-0 and eventual national champs West Florida 3-1. In 112.2 innings, he posted an ERA of 2.00 and set a Barry record with 126 strikeouts, holding opponents to a .214 batting average. He tossed three complete games, including both wins in the regional. Against Florida Tech on Mar. 11, he set two more Barry records in a 2-0 shutout of the Panthers, striking out 16 and recording a 97 game score, both program highs.
“I’m really excited,” Rodriguez said. “I was getting a little nervous after the seventh round, because not many teams said I’d probably go past that, but I just stayed positive and it worked out.”
Green was a consensus All-American in his only season with the Bucs, garnering first-team honors from Daktronics, Inc., the American Baseball Coaches Association and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers. The Sunshine State Conference Player of the Year and a finalist for the Tino Martinez Award, Green led the Bucs to the finals of the South Region Tournament this season. He hit .400 for the year with 22 doubles, a triple, 19 homers and 77 RBI. He also drew 45 walks, 14 of which were intentional including seven at the regional tournament, to post a .528 on-base percentage. He holds school single season records for intentional walks and extra base hits. He strung together a 21-game hitting streak and had 20 multi-hit games and 19 multi-RBI games.
“It’s a blessing for me,” Green said. “After everything that happened at Oklahoma State, it makes me proud of my decision to come to Barry. It was the right one for me and the right one for the program. Now I’m just looking forward to continuing my career and hopefully make it up to the big leagues.”
He was the 14th first baseman off the board, going 113 picks before Zach Johnson, the first baseman who replaced him at Oklahoma State.