Three More Blue Devils Go Late in MLB Draft

Wednesday was a memorable day for Duke baseball, as four Blue Devils and three incoming recruits were selected in the Major League Baseball Draft.

Thursday, three more Duke players got the opportunity to pursue their dreams of making it to the majors.

Pitchers Chris Manno (38th round-Washington Nationals) and Michael Ness (47th round-San Francisco Giants), along with outfielder Tim Sherlock (40th round-Arizona Diamondbacks) were picked on Day 3 of the MLB Draft, bringing Duke's total number of draftees to seven.

Both Manno and Ness were juniors this season, meaning that they have the option of signing a professional contract and joining their organizations or returning to Duke for their senior seasons. Junior outfielder/pitcher Alex Hassan, who was taken in the 20th round Wednesday by the Boston Red Sox, is in the same situation.

If Sherlock reaches the major leagues with the Diamondbacks, he will have the chance to join up with his father Glenn Sherlock, who is a bullpen coach for Arizona.  Duke's best pitcher last season, senior Andrew Wolcott, was also selected by Arizona in the 17th round.

No new information is available regarding Duke's three recruits--Steven Baron, Marcus Stroman and Cameron Coffey--who were drafted yesterday. Head coach Sean McNally said he was not surprised they had been drafted, but that he expected them to be at Duke in the Fall.

Complete list of drafted players and recruits:

Compensation Round A, #33: C Steven Baron, Seattle Mariners (recruit)

Round 20, #610: OF/RHP Alex Hassan, Boston Red Sox

Round 22, #656: LHP Cameron Coffey, Baltimore Orioles 

Round 38, #1132: LHP Chris Manno, Washington Nationals

Round 40, #1206: OF Tim Sherlock, Arizona Diamondbacks

Round 47, #1407: RHP Michael Ness, San Francisco Giants