June 11, 2009
Lamar pitchers Kevin Angelle, James Brandhorst, Brian Needham and Ricky Testa were all selected by clubs in the 2009 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft on Wednesday and Thursday.
Needham and Testa are both seniors, while Angelle and Brandhorst are juniors who spent their first two seasons of college at San Jacinto and Blinn College, respectively.
Testa was the first Lamar student-athlete selected, having his named called at 1:55 p.m. Central time by representatives of the Colorado Rockies, marking the third time for them to chose a Cardinal. The Mesquite, Texas native was the tenth pick of the 18th round, becoming the highest LU draftee since Michael Ambort was a fifth round choice of Houston in 2007.
In 2009, Testa went 8-3 with a 4.13 earned run average and one save while appearing in 19 games. In two seasons as a Cardinal, the right-hander saw action in 39 games with nine starts as he fashioned an 11-5 record with one save and a 4.39 ERA.
Approximately 15 minutes after Testa, Brandhorst was picked by the Baltimore Orioles with the fifth choice of the 20th round. The right-hander out of San Antonio, Texas, was used in a closer role for much of the 2009 campaign, posting a 3.59 ERA with two saves and a 3-0 record in 47.2 innings covering 25 appearances.
As a junior, he still has the option to return to school and complete his college eligibility. This is the second-consecutive year for a Cardinal junior to be selected following Justin Walker's selection in the 41st round by the Cincinnati Reds.
Needham was selected by the New York Mets with the 23rd pick of the 28th round, becoming the fourth Cardinal all-time to be picked by the organization. The righty from Sugar Land, Texas, was previously drafted by the Astros in the 18th round of the 2005 draft out of Dulles High School.
He concluded his career with 87 appearances to rank second all-time in Lamar history, while his team-high 31 appearances in 2009 are the second-most in school annals. He was 4-3 with two saves this season to conclude his career with a 12-16 mark and seven saves over 190.2 innings.
Angelle had to wait until the final day, but not too long into the process as the Philadelphia Phillies made their first-ever pick of a Lamar player with the 26th selection of the 31st round at 10:40 a.m. CT Thursday. The Bridge City, Texas native was previously drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 13th round of the 2006 draft out of Bridge City HS. Out of the 21 SLC players selected in the draft this year, he was the only left-handed pitcher taken.
In 2009, hs nly season at Lamar, he went 3-2 with a 6.59 ERA. He appeared in 11 games with six starts, including a 6.2 inning outing in an elimination game of the SLC Tournament in which he struck out five and allowed just one run on five hits to help Lamar stay alive in the tourney.
Lamar has now had at least one player drafted for eight-consecutive years and 16 of the last 17 drafts. A total of 69 Cardinals have been selected 71 times since 1969. LU also leads the Southland Conference in all-time draftees with 59 in 32 years as a league member.
The four pitchers selected are the most since 2006 when four hurlers were taken then as well.
