June 8, 2007

Little surprise, lots of jubilation

Parker's Noonan glad to be 32nd pick and Giants' choice

By Bill Dickens
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

Nick Noonan spent a good portion of yesterday watching the first round of baseball's annual free-agent draft on television in his family's Tierrasanta home.

At the same time, his father, Bill, was monitoring the proceedings on the Internet in another room.

“All of a sudden I heard this noise in the kitchen, and it was my dad jumping up and down,” said the younger Noonan, who graduated from Francis Parker last week.

Soon the jubilation spread throughout the house as it was revealed the San Francisco Giants had selected the middle infielder with the 32nd pick overall. Noonan was the second player chosen in the compensatory round, just two picks below the first round.

“I'm kinda surprised to go this early, but really I'm more excited about it,” said Noonan, who also has a baseball scholarship to Clemson University. “I knew the Giants had a lot of interest.”

So did most big league clubs.

“We've had scouts at just about every one of our games,” said Noonan, who helped the Lancers (29-6) capture the section Division IV championship earlier this week. “And most of them have been to my home.”

Noonan, who posted a career average of .505 with 32 home runs and 156 RBI, was drafted as a shortstop, a position he prefers. Some scouts believe he will become a second baseman.

“I'm really excited about signing and going out to begin my professional career,” Noonan said. “I'm glad I was drafted by a West Coast team. I like my prospects with the Giants. They move their players along very quickly, and that was a concern.”

The book on the left-handed hitting Noonan, a 6-foot, 180-pounder, is he'll probably wind up a table-setter at the next level. Although more than half of his 205 hits have gone for extra bases during his four-year career at Francis Parker, Noonan slugged a section record 10 triples as a senior and is considered to have better than average major league speed.

Some have compared Noonan to Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Chase Utley.

Mets select Rustich

UCLA junior right-hander Brant Rustich (Grossmont High), chosen by the New York Mets in the second round, was the only other local player selected during the five rounds completed yesterday.

“I was definitely ecstatic when I heard that the Mets chose me in the second round,” said Rustich on the UCLA Web site. “I can't help but think of all the people who have been there to support me throughout my career.”

Rustich leads the Bruins with six saves and has 28 strikeouts in 29 2/3 innings. He and the Bruins play at Cal State Fullerton this weekend in the Super Regionals.

– KIRK KENNEY