Pickens Leaves Michigan for Pro Contract With Indians
8/9/2007 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Multi-position player Doug Pickens (West Bloomfield, Mich./Brother Rice) of the University of Michigan baseball team has decided to forego his senior season and sign a professional contract with the Cleveland Indians, who selected him June 8 in the 50th round of the 2007 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. Pickens, a junior on U-M's 2007 squad that won an NCAA regional, played catcher, second base and rightfield for the Wolverines.
Pickens
"Doug was a great player for us, without question," head coach Rich Maloney stated. "He had an opportunity to play at the next level. He had set a figure in mind that was acceptable for him. He didn't know whether or not it would be met and it was met. He's honoring his word. Certainly it's a loss to us. On the flip side of it, you want your kids to have opportunities. He's committed to coming back to school and finishing his degree at some point. We're glad about that. We're going to miss him. He was a great player, and certainly when your program is going well these things will happen. We're excited about his opportunity and we'll move forward minus a good player."
Pickens was fourth among the 2007 Big Ten Conference champion Wolverines with a .338 batting average. U-M's most versatile player, Pickens started in all 61 games at one of three positions (catcher-31, rightfield-21, second base-9). He earned All-Big Ten third team honors as an outfielder.
Pickens also started every one of U-M's 64 games in 2006 (2B-38, RF-22, C-3, DH-1). He batted .302 as a sophomore, tying for the team lead in runs (43) and leading in runs batted in (47). As a freshman, he appeared in 52 of 61 games for the Maize and Blue, making 39 starts between three positions (RF-28, 2B-7, LF-4). He hit .255 with 22 runs and 18 RBI.
For his career, Pickens batted .304, scored 102 runs, and tallied 106 RBI. He also had 29 doubles, four triples and 13 home runs. Pickens played in 177 of a possible 186 games, making 164 starts at one of five positions.
Cleveland Indians Site
Contact: Jim Schneider (734) 763-4423
