June 7, 2005

AUBURN, Ala. -- Auburn seniors Karl Amonite, Arnold Hughey and John Madden and juniors Josh Bell, Michael Nix, Josh Sullivan and Clete Thomas were all drafted on the first day of the 2005 Major League Baseball First-Year Player on Tuesday afternoon. Sullivan was the 147th pick by the Colorado Rockies in the fifth round while Bell (176) and Thomas (180) were both selected in the sixth round by Toronto and Detroit, respectfully. Madden went to San Diego in the 8th round with pick 248 while Hughey also went to the Padres in the 13th round (398). Nix was selected by the Atlanta Braves in the 11th round (347) while Amonite went to the Yankees in the 13th round with pick 409.

        "I am real excited for all of those guys," AU Coach Tom Slater said. "Some of those guys like Sullivan, Nix and Hughey, have never been drafted before and they all had good years for us. A lot of that credit goes to Coach (Matt) Myers. I think you are going to see all of these guys have productive and very successful professional careers. "

Sullivan, a junior right-handed pitcher, was the seventh pick of the fifth round after finishing his junior campaign 7-5 with a 4.27 ERA. Auburn's Saturday starter, he struck out 74 in 97.0 innings while holding opponents to a .237 batting average. His finest start of the season came against VMI on March 12 when he threw a complete-game shutout, limiting the Keydets to three hits while striking out a career-high nine batters.

"I was very excited and I am very happy with the team that I went to," Sullivan said. "I got a call late in the fourth (round) and they said that a few guys in the fifth and sixth were pulling for me."

"Obviously Josh Sullivan being drafted in the fifth round after having just thrown one inning before this year is quite and accomplishment," Slater said. "It is a real testament to him and how hard he worked and a real testament to Coach Myers and how much work he did in developing him."

Bell, Auburn's everyday catcher, hit 11 home runs and drove in 59 runs while hitting a career-best .338 in 2004. The sixth pick of the sixth round, he started 59 games this season, 48 behind the plate, and has seen action in 165 games in his career. Last season he became Auburn's first two-way player since 1996 as he hit .274 with a team-leading 10 home runs while also going 3-3 with a 4.75 ERA from the mound.

"I was hoping to go a little bit higher, but sixth round is a great opportunity so I am definitely not going to pass up on this," Bell said. "I was drafted as a catcher and that is where I am planning to play. I hope to pitch in my career but I am definitely working on playing as a catcher."

Thomas, a regular in Auburn's outfield for the past three seasons, has started 179 consecutive games for the Tigers. The 10th pick in the sixth round, he hit .328 this season while scoring a career-best 66 runs. A Second-Team All-SEC selection, he reached base safely in 35 of the final 38 games this season.

"It has always been my dream to play in the big leagues," Thomas said. "I guess that every kid who plays dreams of playing with the big guys. I want to get out there to see what happens and to show them what I can do."

"Josh (Bell) and Clete were guys that came in here three years ago as fifth round selections and they went out this year and both had career years," Slater said.

Madden, a right-handed pitcher from Kissimmee, Fla., was one half of Auburn's dynamic duo out of the bullpen. A drop-down pitcher, his 1.77 ERA was tops in the SEC and was among the national leaders all season long. Sporting a 6-2 record out of the bullpen, he appeared in a school-record 44 games, throwing 86 1/3 innings and striking out 58 while walking just 19 this season.

"I had been driving all day and I walked in the door and my parents had the internet up and they told me I was drafted," Madden said. "It was very exciting. (The Padres) called a minute later. I talked to the area scout and he said he would call tonight to figure everything out."

Auburn's closer this season, Nix finished his junior campaign with a 5-3 mark with an SEC-leading 13 saves in 32 appearances. A hard-throwing right hander and the other half to Auburn's duo out of the pen, he struck out 58 batters in 59 innings of work, holding opponents to a .244 batting average.

"Me, Josh Sullivan and my dad were over at my house," Nix said. "We grilled out a little bit and watched and listened to the draft on the computer. It has been my dream since I was a little kid to play professional baseball but me and my family need to talk and figure out exactly what we feel is right for me right now and we will probably make that decision pretty quickly."

Hughey, a senior left-handed pitcher, played the role of Friday-night starter for the Tigers this season and posted a career-best 8-4 record in 17 starts. His 98 2/3 innings led the Auburn pitching staff, as did his 80 strikeouts. A 13th-round pick, he won his final five collegiate starts and has amassed 272 strikeouts in his career, which ranks fifth in Auburn history.

"I was watching on the internet and I saw everyone else's name pop up and I was hoping my name would show up sooner or later," Hughey said. "It was a great feeling to know that I would be with (John) Madden because we are pretty good buddies. I think it is going to be a lot of fun."

Amonite was the seventh Tiger drafted on the day when the New York Yankees selected him in the 13th round. A slugging first baseman, Amonite led the Tigers in batting average (.365), doubles (25), home runs (11), RBI (59), slugging percentage (.654), walks (41) and on-base percentage (.469).

"I'm excited," Amonite said. "I am glad to be with the Yankees organization. I am ready to play."

Sullivan became the 10th Tiger to be drafted in the first five rounds in the last nine years and the 22nd Tiger to be drafted in the first five rounds in school history. Auburn's seven draft picks makes it nine straight years that Auburn has had at least three players drafted in a season while the selection of seven Tigers is a school record, surpassing the five picks from 1988, '93, '97, '99 and 2000.