9th Round For Rine
June 03, 2003 05:28 PM | General
June 3, 2003
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia University center fielder Jarod Rine was picked by the Baltimore Orioles in the ninth round of the Major League Draft conducted Tuesday afternoon in New York City.
He was the 254th overall player drafted.
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| A strong junior season by Jarod Rine has helped him get drafted in the 9th round by the Baltimore Orioles. (Steve Smith photo) |
Rine, the Big East co-player of the year, was the first player in the Big East selected in the draft. Rine is also just the fifth WVU player drafted in the top 10 rounds and the first since first-rounder Chris Enochs was taken in 1997.
West Virginia's other top 10-round draft picks were pitcher John Radosevich (5th, 1965), outfielder Darrell Whitmore (2nd, 1990) and pitcher Steve Kline (Cleveland, 8th).
Rine, a Moundsville native, had a breakout offensive season as a junior, batting .403 with nine home runs and 34 RBI in 186 at-bats this season. The junior scored 43 runs and led the Mountaineers with a perfect 14 of 14 stolen bases.
“I’m amazed,” said Rine from his home in Moundsville. “I just tried to keep myself busy and keep my mind off the draft.”
The 6-foot-2, 195-pound outfielder had a pretty good idea his name was going to be called after a successful workout for the Orioles last weekend. Rine also had an invitation to workout for the Anaheim Angels but was unable to because West Virginia qualified for the Big East tournament.
“I’m not real familiar with the draft but I thought I had a chance to go in the top 10 rounds,” Rine said.
Last year as a sophomore Rine hit .308 with two home runs and 11 extra base hits in 143 at-bats. He improved his batting average by nearly .100 points and doubled his number of extra base hits to 22.
“I really focused on my hitting and I spent a lot of time trying to improve at the plate,” said Rine.
Rine says he will sit down with his family and evaluate Baltimore’s offer. If he doesn’t sign, he has another year of eligibility left with the Mountaineers.
“Playing professional baseball is something I’ve always dreamed of doing,” he said. “We’ll listen to what they have to offer.”
The Orioles took two outfielders before Rine: Young Harris College's Nicholas Markakis with the seventh pick of the first round and Texas centerfielder Eric Sultemeier with the 164th pick in the sixth round.
The Major League Draft finished with the 20th round today and resumes once again on Wednesday. The draft will conclude after the 50th round.
