All Mitch Harris can do is wait.
The St. Louis Cardinals selected Harris, a right-handed pitcher from Navy, in the 13th round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft on Friday. But Harris? professional baseball fate is now in the hands of Navy officials, who will decide how he?ll spend his required five years of military service after graduating from the Academy last month.
Harris, who had 291 strikeouts and a career 2.51 ERA at Navy, is hoping to find a way to honor his military obligations and pursue his dream of playing professionally. Harris is hoping a compromise can be reached and believes John Abbamondi, a former Navy pilot and current St. Louis assistant general manager, can make it happen.
“[Abbamondi] knows the ins and outs of the Navy, and I believe if anyone can help me work something out, it?s him,” Harris said. “The Cardinals are a great organization and I?m just relieved the draft is over so now I can move on to the next step.”
Harris, who has been assigned to the Norfolk, Va.-based USS Ponce, knows his case will be scrutinized because Army allowed football players, including safety Caleb Campbell, to pursue an NFL career as part of its Alternative Service Option policy. The policy allows those with “special talents” to pursue professional opportunities and are assigned to recruiting centers in cities where they play. Secretary of the Navy Donald C. Winter, however, has suspended its policy while the country is at war.
“I know people are going to look at my case closely because of what Army is doing,” Harris said. “I?m not too worried about what the final decision is because those people were placed in their positions to make the right choices for the Navy.”
As Harris? professional future depends on the decisions of others, fellow Navy pitcher, sophomore Oliver Drake, controls his own destiny. The Orioles selected the right-handed Drake, 21, in the 43rd round of the draft. Drake can sign with the Orioles without a penalty since he has not yet signed his five-year commitment papers. All Midshipmen can leave the Academy without having to repay tuition after their sophomore year.
Drake went 6-3 with a 3.70 ERA and led the Patriot League with 78 strikeouts this past season. The naive of Gardner, Mass., entered the week 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA with four strikeouts and a walk for the Maryland Orioles, a summer team coached by Orioles scout Dean Albany.
Albany said the Orioles want to follow Drake?s progress over the summer and hope to sign him by the Aug. 15 deadline. Albany added Drake would have been a higher draft pick had he played for a civilian school.
“Since Oliver is going to be playing for us over the summer, we at least wanted to have some control over him,” Albany said. “We know it?s going to have to be a good offer for him to sign with us because a Naval Academy education is something that is so valuable. He?ll be a success no matter what path he chooses.”
