BY TYLER CLIFTON
HERALD DEMOCRAT
Former Grayson County College standout Andy LaRoche delivered the game-winning hit to lift the Pittsburgh Pirates past the Atlanta Braves on Thursday afternoon, and another Viking could possibly be his teammate in the years to come.
GCC right-handed relief pitcher Ryan Beckman was the 535th overall pick in the 19th round by Pittsburgh one day earlier, one of five (three current and two former) Vikings chosen in the three-day affair.
Beckman, 6-foot-4, 185 pounds from North Crowley High School in Crowley, finished 4-1 with two saves. He pitched 29 2/3 innings and appeared in 19 games for the Vikings.
"I'm pretty excited about what's going on right now," said Beckman, who will most likely sign but would return for his sophomore year if the numbers aren't right. "I've matured a bit for sure in my time at Grayson."
Sam Honeck, a first baseman who recently finished his senior year at Tulane University, was the first player with GCC ties to be selected after the New York Mets picked him up with the 344th overall pick in the 11th round.
Honeck, a First Team All-Conference USA selection, led the Green Wave in home runs (16), RBIs (69) and slugging percentage (.668). He also posted a .981 fielding percentage making him a solid two-way player.
Former Viking and current Texas Christian University right fielder Chris Ellington was a Second Team Mountain West Conference selection while ranking third in the conference with his team-leading 55 RBIs in as many games (45 starts). He was the 976th overall selection in the 32nd round by the Milwaukee Brewers.
Ellington, from Weatherford, was also 12th in the league and third on the team with his .344 batting average, as the Horned Frogs fell one win short of playing in this weekend's College World Series. He tied for second in the league with a school-record tying 21 doubles and reached base in 38 games (hitting safely in 33 of them).
Grayson's current first baseman, sophomore David Stewart, grew up a Cardinals' fan in St. Louis but wound up as the 659th overall pick in the 22nd round by the rival Cincinnati Reds.
Stewart (6-5, 225) hit .326 for the Vikings in 2009 with 13 home runs and 49 RBIs along with 41 runs and 47 hits (11 of them doubles). The University of Nebraska transfer, who has committed to Dallas Baptist, was a solid contact hitter, striking out only 33 times in 144 plate appearances.
"A lot of it is going to come down to money, because it's harder to negotiate when you're picked in the later rounds," Stewart said. "I have a really good feeling about Dallas Baptist and would be more than comfortable going there."
Stewart said he's 75 percent sure he will enter his third year of college and credits coach Dusty Hart for helping him keep his game at a high level.
"Dusty is the best coach I've played for, because although he's relaxed, he demands the best out of you," Stewart said. "If I could go back, I probably would've gone to junior college straight out of high school."
Viking pitcher Brett Bruening could possibly tell Stewart stories about being drafted by the Cardinals after the 2008 season before coming back to tone his game for another year. It didn't hurt his status, as he signed a letter of intent with Southeastern Conference power LSU and was also drafted in the 35th round by the New York Yankees.
Bruening appeared in 14 games and finished with a 6-6 record along with one save in 67 innings.
"I'm just sitting around waiting to see what's going to happen," said Bruening, who will pitch in the Cape Cod League this summer and expects to sign if the dollar amount is right. "It's every players dream to compete professionally, so if the opportunity is there, I'm going to take it."
The two years at Grayson were beneficial for the 6-foot-6, 215-pound Bruening in more ways than one after only getting to pitch his senior year of high school at Flower Mound after an elbow injury sidelined him the previous two seasons. One positive for him is the fact he's in a win-win situation.
"I'm not in a bad position at all," Bruening said. "I really want to go to LSU, so I'll be happy with whatever decision has to be made."