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Dyson's jackpot delayed; Orioles pick Dalles
Pitcher is selected in 10th round when no $1 million offer arrives
By NEIL WHITE and RON MORRISnwhite@thestate.com rmorris@thestate.com
Sam Dyson was selected in the 10th round of Major League Baseball’s first-year player draft Wednesday, but he could have gone much sooner.
According to his father, Sid Dyson, an unnamed club called the sophomore right-hander during the supplemental first round Tuesday night ready to pick him if he were willing to sign for the amount the team offered.
Dyson, looking for a bonus upwards of $1 million, said no. From there he fell to the Oakland A’s with the 303rd pick.
“He probably was over-pricing himself; at least that’s what some of the other (scouts) felt,” Sid Dyson said. “We went fishing yesterday, and he said he was willing to come down. But I guess he didn’t come down far enough for them.”
Dyson, who declined to comment, was one of three USC players selected Wednesday, when rounds four through 30 were conducted. Junior catcher Justin Dalles was picked in the sixth round by the Baltimore Orioles, and junior outfielder DeAngelo Mack was chosen in the 13th round by the New York Yankees. Signee Brooks Hall, a pitcher from T.L. Hanna High in Anderson, was selected in the fourth round by the Milwaukee Brewers.
Sid Dyson said his son, who was rated the No. 38 prospect by Baseball America magazine, wasn’t disappointed. Because he redshirted his freshman season, the hard-throwing Dyson, who is 17-4 in two seasons with the Gamecocks, will maintain some bargaining leverage after next season, especially if he performs well enough to improve his status to a certain first-rounder.
“He has options,” Sid Dyson said. “He can come back to school in the fall and continue, or he can take the draft and hope for the best.”
The Oakland A’s could make an offer that might change Dyson’s mind. In 2006, when Dyson was picked in the 19th round by the Washington Nationals, his father said the team made a late run with a $600,000 offer.
Sid Dyson believes an offer like that one might be forthcoming from the A’s.
“At least that much, hopefully more,” he said.
Mack, the former Airport High star who was an All-SEC second-team selection this season, hoped he would go higher, as well. But as a player who would be a fifth-year senior next season, his options are more limited.
“I was a little surprised,” said Mack, who hit a team-high .361 with 14 homers and 60 RBIs. “I didn’t think that I’d fall that far.”
Mack said he will consult with Columbia-based adviser Lee Long to determine his next move. If he receives a fair offer, he’s inclined to sign.
“I probably would be, but I wouldn’t mind coming back if it didn’t work out,” he said.
Dalles didn’t have to wait as long as his teammates. He was chosen in the draft for the fourth time, and his sixth-round selection was his highest. He earned second-team All-SEC honors this season by hitting .324 with 15 homers and 47 RBIs.
He was not available for comment, but his return is likely to be determined by Baltimore’s bonus offer, as well as a potential lack of bargaining power next year if he returns for his senior season.
Junior first baseman Nick Ebert was not selected in the first 30 rounds Wednesday, virtually ensuring his return, and no other USC recruits were chosen. The draft’s final 20 rounds will take place today.