June 6, 2008

Lamar had two players selected on the second day of the 2008 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft on Friday.

The Cardinals who were taken were a pair of left-handed pitchers in fifth-year senior Tim Erickson and junior Justin Walker. Erickson was chosen by the New York Mets with the 22nd pick of the 37th round, while Walker was tabbed with the seventh pick of the 41st round by the Cincinnati Reds.

Erickson, who is from Sour Lake and was an all-state pitcher at Hardin-Jefferson, was the 2008 Southland Conference Pitcher of the Year after going 8-3 with nine saves and a 3.83 earned run average. He finished his career first at Lamar in career saves with 17, while his nine in 2008 rank second all-time.

Erickson is ranked 39th in the NCAA in saves and 55th in victories. He is also a finalist at relief pitcher for the NCBWA All-America Team, which will be announced next week, and received his bachelor's degree in exercise science last month.

A local product from Nederland, Walker finished his third season at Lamar with as 2-2 record and a 4.85 ERA in 19 appearances, including seven starts. His seven walks in 65 innings pitched ranks seventh in the NCAA for fewest walks per nine innings.

Two of Walker's stronger outings of the year came in the last two weeks of the season, when he struck out five McNeese State batters and held the Cowboys to five hits and no runs over 7.1 innings in Lamar's 11-10 come-from-behind win that gave coach Jim Gilligan his 1100th career victory. He also earned the win in Lamar's 11-7 win over Texas State a week later in the SLC Tournament with 5.1 innings of seven-hit ball.

If he does not sign with the Reds organization Walker has the option of remaining in school and finishing his career with the Cardinals.

Lamar has now had at least one player drafted for seven-consecutive years and 15 of the last 16 drafts. A total of 65 Cardinals have been selected 67 times since 1969.

Additionally, Jamie Bagley, who signed with Lamar in the fall, was taken by the Tampa Bay Rays with the first pick of the 35th round. Bagley went 7-1 this year with a 4.87 ERA as a sophomore at San Jacinto JC. He played prep ball at Huffman HS and was drafted in the 25th round of the 2006 MLB Draft by the Chicago Cubs.