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Pirate battery drafted on first day
From ECU Media Relations
with Bonesville staff contributions
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Catcher Clayton
McCullough |
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Pitcher Sam
Narron |
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Narron to Texas, Indians grab McCullough
GREENVILLE — The Texas Rangers selected their manager's nephew, East
Carolina junior left-handed pitcher Sam Narron, in the 15th round of the
2002 Major League Baseball Draft on Tuesday.
A short time later, ECU's senior catcher, Clayton McCullough, was taken
by the Cleveland Indians in the 22nd round.
"It was a honor just to be selected," said Narron, whose uncle, Jerry
Narron, is the Rangers' skipper. "I was a little apprehensive all day, so
this was a welcomed surprise. Not everybody gets this opportunity, so I'm
very happy to be given this chance."
According to Pirate assistant coach Kevin McMullan, ECU's coaching staff
knew all along it was courting a future professional baseball player when
Narron was recruited during his prep days at Eastern Wayne.
"Coming out of high school, we believed that Sam was a professional
prospect," said McMullan. "Through three years of hard work he earned the
right to be drafted. I think it says a lot about our program and a lot about
what (pitching) Coach [Tommy] Eason has done from a development standpoint."
Narron earned second team All-Conference USA honors this season, posting
an 8-3 record with a 2.98 ERA. He is tied for sixth place on ECU's career
victories list with 26 and also ranks among the school's all-time top 10 in
innings pitched (277.2) and games started (41).
In addition to his family ties to Major League Baseball through his
uncle, Narron's father, Richard, played professionally in the New York Mets
organization, and his grandfather, Sam, played in the majors with
Pittsburgh.
McCullough, a native of Greenville, was the 26th pick of the Cleveland
Indians and 664th choice overall. As a senior, he batted a career-best .303
establishing career-highs in runs, doubles, home runs, and RBI.
For McCullough, it was the second time he was picked — and this time he
went higher in the pecking order. He was originally drafted out of high
school by the Seattle Mariners in the 47th round of the 1998 MLB Draft.
"Clayton has a tremendous work ethic and has put himself into this
position through hard work," McMullan stated. "It says a lot about our
program to have a pair of guys drafted on the first day."
Visit ECUPirates.com. Bonesville.net contributed to
this report.
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