- Font Size:
- Default font size
- Larger font size
BY BRIAN WADDLE
Times Correspondent | Saturday, June 07, 2008 | (1 comment(s))
Andy Loomis was too excited to be mad at himself. But his appetite did get in the way of his big day in the sun Friday.
Loomis thought he was safe to go grab a bite to eat with a friend Friday afternoon in Whiting, and wouldn't have to worry about missing anything on the TV or Internet with live coverage of the 2008 Major League Baseball draft.
Unfortunately, Loomis missed seeing his name flash across the screen.
"I figured I was going 30th (round) or later since I'm a (college) senior and they usually go late," the left-handed pitcher said. "Then my brother calls me and said I was drafted in the 16th round (by the Florida Marlins). I was like, 'You've got to be kidding me? I missed it.'"
The good thing is Loomis didn't miss the plate much this past season at Purdue.
The standout southpaw and Bishop Noll grad went 4-1 as a reliever for the Boilermakers. He finished with a 1.72 ERA and a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 30-8 in 32 appearances. Loomis thought he might be a later pick because he's a senior and doesn't have options like underclassmen or high school seniors who get drafted.
"I'm just glad I got an opportunity -- that's all you can ask for," Loomis said. "Now I'm just going to worry about baseball. That's my main focus now."
Loomis, who pitched two seasons at South Suburban College before playing the last two at Purdue, thinks a big boost in going so early was the fact his velocity increased at the perfect time. He said he was topping off at 88 mph for most of the season, but hit 92 mph on the radar gun against Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament championship game.
Next up for Loomis will be signing a contract and heading to one of the Marlins' minor league affiliates, most likely the Single-A Jamestown Jammers in the New York-Pennsylvania League, he said.
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL | FIRST-YEAR PLAYER DRAFT
Back to story 1 comment(s)
- It wasn't clear, concise or focused on the topic in the story.
- It was a personal attack, vulgar, explicit or degrading, used actual or implied profanity or contained potentially libelous statements.
- It accused someone of being guilty of a crime.
- It promoted violence or illegal acts.
- It contained telephone numbers or street addresses, or e-mail addresses and links to Web sites other than nwi.com or government agencies.
In no way do these comments represent the views of The Times or Lee Enterprises.
Passionate views, pointed criticism and critical thinking are welcome. Name-calling, crude and profane language and personal abuse are not welcome.
Reader comments will not be edited - they will be approved or declined. They may be used in the print edition of the newspaper.
If you feel a posted comment has violated these guidelines, please email our New Media team the commenter's name, the comment and a link to the article.
For more information please read our Terms of Service.
Jennifer wrote on Jun 16, 2008 7:19 AM: