CURT McKEEVER / Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Monday, June 5, 2006 7:00 pm
Two years ago, Joba Chamberlain came to Nebraska merely hoping to have enough success to eventually be picked in the first 12 rounds of a major-league draft.
Boy, did the Lincoln Northeast graduate meet his goal. On Tuesday, Nebraska’s right-handed junior pitcher became the school’s sixth first-round pick when the New York Yankees selected him with the 41st overall choice.
Chamberlain, ranked by Baseball America as the No. 7 prospect in this year’s draft, was taken in the supplemental phase at the end of the first round, where teams that suffer a loss of a Type A free agent the previous season are given a pick.
“It’s first round somewhere, and it’s just the opportunity to play,” Chamberlain said when asked how he felt about where he was taken.
His position likely will earn him a signing bonus that approaches $1 million. Last year, Atlanta paid an $825,000 bonus to the player it chose with the 41st pick.
While Chamberlain ended up being taken in the round most projected he would, two other Nebraska sophomores who figured to go by the fifth round fell much lower and could end up back with the Huskers as juniors.
Left-handed pitcher Tony Watson, an All-Big 12 Conference selection and second-team All-American who was tabbed No. 86 on the Baseball America list, wasn’t selected until the 17th round by Baltimore.
Shortstop Ryan Wehrle, who earned similar honors as Watson, was ranked No. 116 by Baseball America. But he wasn’t taken until the 18th round — the last one completed on Tuesday — by Cincinnati.
Nebraska coach Mike Anderson previously had said he felt Watson would turn pro if picked where he was projected, but that he would recommend Wehrle return to improve his position. Neither player could be reached for comment Tuesday night.
Nebraska senior catcher Jeff Christy was a Husker who was left with a nice surprise, as Minnesota took him with the 186th overall pick in the sixth round. The 13th catcher selected this year, Christy became highest Husker catcher taken since Bill McGuire was the 27th overall pick in 1985.
“It’s kind of like the game — you never know,” Christy, a Lincoln Southeast graduate, said of the draft. “I didn’t have any expectations. I’m excited. I at least wanted to give pro ball a chance.”
Tuesday marked the first time two Husker players from Lincoln had been chosen in the first six rounds of a draft.
Two other NU players were drafted on Tuesday — junior outfielder Luke Gorsett, by St. Louis in the seventh round, and senior right-handed reliever Brett Jensen, by Detroit in the 14th round.
Additionally, Nebraska recruit Zach McAllister — a 6-foot-5, 230-pound right-handed pitcher from Chillicothe, Ill., who recently was named the Gatorade Player of the Year in his state — was taken as the 104th overall pick in the third round to the Yankees.
Reached Tuesday, McAllister said he plans to bypass college and begin his pro career.
Chamberlain joked Tuesday morning that his father, a visible figure at NU home games in Haymarket Park, has “never been a Yankees fan, but he can probably learn to grow to like the Yankees.”
Chamberlain came to Nebraska two years ago after spending one season at NCAA Division II Nebraska-Kearney. In two seasons with the Huskers, he went 16-7 with a 3.29 ERA and recorded 232 strikeouts. Last year, he went 10-2 and earned third-team All-American honors.
Chamberlain said Tuesday he finally felt like a major-league prospect after a 15-strikeout performance against eventual 2005 national champion Texas.
“Everybody gets one of those every once in a while, so I’m like ‘OK.’ And then I had another good one and then had a couple bad outings and was ‘Man, what’s going on?’” Chamberlain recalled. “Before the Texas game I sat down and worked on some things and just talked about it (with former NU pitching coach Rob Childress). I think from that point on I realized that this was for me.
“The biggest thing was that he had confidence in me. The way that he conducted himself towards me, he knew there was more in me than maybe I was showing. That’s something that I was thankful for, because there were some times when I struggled, I didn’t know if I had made the right decision. He sat me down and was like ‘This is where you need to be.’ That’s something that I’ll always take with me when I doubt myself, because there’s always other people that believe in me.”
Chamberlain has aligned himself with Texas firm Hendricks Sports Management. Among the major-leaguers the company has represented are: Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte, Al Leiter, Braden Looper and Kip Wells.
As far as his contract negotiations go, “It’s a process for me, learning what’s going to go on, so we’ll just take it one day at a time and communicate with the team and see what happens,” Chamberlain said.
Briefly
Two former Huskers ended up being taken in the first six rounds. Catcher Brad Furnish (now at Texas Christian) was the 54th overall pick in the second round to St. Louis. Adam Moore (Texas-Arlington) was the 171st overall pick in the sixth round to Seattle.
Reach Curt McKeever at 473-7441 or cmckeever@journalstar.com.