June 6, 2008

Villanova Draft History

VILLANOVA, Pa.-- On Friday afternoon in the annual Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, a pair of Villanova players in shortstop Derek Shunk (Yardley, Pa.) and starting pitcher Jordan Ellis (Bryn Mawr, Pa.) were drafted by the San Diego Padres (17th round, 525 overall) and Philadelphia Phillies (28th round, 856 overall), respectively. This marks the seventh straight season that the Wildcats have had at least one player chosen in the draft and the sixth time in that seven-year period that two players have been drafted.

"From a coaching perspective the exciting thing about the draft is to see the players get an opportunity to play at the next level," Villanova head coach Joe Godri said. "A lot of times with four-year players there is more hope than there is expectation going into the draft and it is that much more rewarding to see them be selected. Derek and Jordan had a body of work over four years that earned them the opportunity to play professionally and I am thrilled for them to become the latest Villanova players to go into the draft."

Shunk recently finished a four-year Wildcat career in which he broke the program's career records for hits, games played and at-bats. He started all but one team game in his four years and wound up hitting .350 (291-831) with 291 hits, 172 runs scored, 155 RBI and 380 total bases in 216 games. He batted .377 as a senior this season and finished the year riding a career-best 15-game hitting streak. Shunk cemented his draft-day status by hitting .556 (10-18) with two home runs in four games at the BIG EAST Championship.

"Derek is a player who would have put up big offensive numbers in college no matter where he attended. We are so fortunate that he chose to come to Villanova and put up those incredible numbers for us. His place in history for a program that has been around since 1866 is a huge statement."

Ellis pitched three years for the Wildcats after transferring back near his hometown after spending his freshman campaign at the University of Virginia. He was the anchor of the Villanova starting rotation this season and finished the year with a 3-6 record and 5.72 ERA. In 78 2/3 innings pitched Ellis allowed 84 hits and struck out 66. In his three seasons with the Wildcats Ellis lost just eight times in 31 starts and compiled 14 victories to rank 11th in school history.

"I am really excited for Jordan," Godri said. "He was a very good pitcher for us and ranks 11th in school history in wins but from a talent standpoint I feel that he could be a guy who has a better pro career than college career. He had some injuries early in his high school and college careers that set him back slightly experience wise but I could see him really flourish in the minor leagues and put a nice career together.

Shunk and Ellis become the 47th and 48th players from Villanova to be chosen since the inception of the draft in 1965. The Wildcats have also had several recruits at the high school level in recent years that were drafted prior to enrolling at the University or choosing to begin their professional careers.

"It is a huge statement about the quality of the players in our organization to have a high number of draft picks in the last seven years," Godri said. At the same time the draft is always a little bittersweet and my heart goes out to the rest of the guys from our team who had a chance to reach the next level through the draft. I am hopeful that they might have some free agent opportunities now if they choose to pursue that route."

ADDITIONAL NOTES (Derek Shunk)

The 17th round selection of Shunk makes him the highest drafted position player from Villanova since 1996, when shortstop Larry Kleinz was also taken in the 17th round. Kleinz was the 494th overall pick in that year's draft and was chosen by the Florida Marlins.

The most recent Villanova position player drafted was also selected by the San Diego Padres. In the 2006 draft, the Padres chose first baseman Jeremy Hunt in the 28th round with the 843rd overall pick. Hunt has enjoyed a successful pro career in the Padres minor league system and is currently playing with the Lake Elsinore Storm in the Advanced Class-A California League.

"Hopefully Derek will eventually get a chance to play alongside former teammate Jeremy Hunt," Godri said. "The Padres have treated Jeremy extremely fair during his successful pro career. The same scout drafted Derek that chose Jeremy and I think Derek may have gone off the board to the Padres earlier in the draft than other teams would have expected because of Jeremy's success in the organization."

ADDITIONAL NOTES (Jordan Ellis)

Villanova has had at least one pitcher drafted in each of the last seven years and Ellis is the ninth pitcher taken overall in that period. The Wildcats have had a total of 26 pitchers drafted overall.

Ellis is the fourth player from Villanova to be drafted by the Phillies and the first since Rob Cafiero was taken in the 32nd round of the 2002 draft. The other draft picks by the Phillies are Gene Schall (1991) and John Pilato (1998). Schall is currently a regional supervisor in the Phillies scouting department.

"Jordan is in a great organization with the Phillies," Godri said. "I am confident that he will receive good tutelage in their system and one of the first people to get a crack at him may be former Villanova pitcher Bill Bliss, who is an instructor in the Phillies minor league system."

ADDITIONAL NOTES (Villanova Program)

Since the inception of the draft in 1965 the Wildcats have had a total of 48 players drafted 56 times.

Shunk and Ellis will have the opportunity to join four other former Villanova players who are currently active in the professional ranks. In addition to Hunt, pitcher Brian Slocum is currently in the major leagues with the Cleveland Indians, pitcher Kevin Mulvey is pitching at the Triple-A level in the Minnesota Twins organization and pitcher Mike Loree is in the San Francisco Giants organization.