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With the 2013 MLB Draft this week, and no Arizona baseball Super Regional appearance this year, here's a look at how the stars from the 2012 Wildcats are doing in the Minor Leagues this year:
Kurt Heyer: Palm Beach Cardinals (St. Louis Cardinals High-A affiliate)
In the 2012 MLB Draft, Kurt Heyer was selected in the 6th round by the St. Louis Cardinals. He went on to pitch in two games each for the Rookie League GCL Cardinals, and Short-season A Batavia Muckdogs.
Heyer started this year in Low-A with the Peoria Chiefs, where he went 3-2 with a 3.40 ERA in 8 starts. Today, he was actually named to the Midwest League All-Star team even though he does not currently pitch in the MWL.
Thanks to everyone for the wishes. I hope to keep throwing low strikes #palmbeach #redbirds
— Kurt Wolfgang Heyer (@KurtHeyer) May 26, 2013
On May 29th, he made his first start with the Palm Beach Cardinals, where he gave up just two earned runs over six innings. He followed that up with a three inning start where he gave up four earned runs.
Florida is the worst place to get shower sweats #godhelpme
— Kurt Wolfgang Heyer (@KurtHeyer) June 2, 2013
Alex Mejia: Palm Beach Cardinals (St. Louis Cardinals High-A affiliate)
Yes, Mejia and Heyer are still teammates. Right after it was announced Heyer was being promoted, the Cardinals moved Mejia up as well to reunite the former Wildcats in Florida.
My buddy Alex Mejia is coming to join me. I guess there are just some people you can't get away from #bff
— Kurt Wolfgang Heyer (@KurtHeyer) May 28, 2013
Mejia was drafted in the fourth round by the Cardinals in 2012, where he went straight to Batavia. In 23 games, he batted just .250 and struck out 13 times before suffering a torn ACL on July 30th.
2013 has been more successful so far for Mejia. In Peoria, he played in 40 games, batted .281, and drove in 13 runs. He also picked up two triples, which came in the same game on May 12th at the Quad City River Bandits. Two weeks later, he was promoted to Palm Beach.
In High-A, he has played in six games so far, but has only picked up one hit.
Robert Refsnyder: Tampa Yankees (New York Yankees High-A affiliate)
Refsnyder was drafted in the fifth round by the Yankees in 2012 after catching the final out of the college baseball season. He was assigned to Low-A Charleston, where he hit .241 in 46 games.
He started 2013 on the same club, but spent just 13 games there as he started the year hitting .370! He was then promoted to High-A Tampa. In 42 games in Tampa, he is batting .294, but his on-base percentage is .412 thanks to 27 walks and six hit-by-pitches.
Seth Mejias-Brean: Dayton Dragons (Cincinnati Reds Low-A affiliate)
Mejias-Brean was drafted in the 8th round of the 2012 Draft by the Reds, but has not seen quite as many promotions as some of his Wildcat teammates have.
After the draft, Mejias-Brean was sent to Rookie League Billings Mustangs, where he hit .313 and eight home runs in 46 games. This year, he has been with the Dayton Dragons all year, but has seen his batting average drop to .249, and the power numbers are not there this year either.
Joey Rickard: Bowling Green Hot Rods (Tampa Bay Rays Low-A affiliate)
Rickard has definitely seen the least amount of success out of the Wildcats' draft class of 2012. After being drafted in the ninth round by the Tampa Bay Rays, he was sent to the Short-season Hudson Valley Renegades. In Hudson Valley, he hit .279 in 47 games, and stole 11 bases.
In 2013 at Bowling Green, he has hit just .238, but has driven in 28 runs, and has a .359 on-base percentage thanks to his 29 walks drawn. He primarily plays right field, but has seen action at all the outfield spots.
So for the most part, these guys are seeing some kind of success in the minors. Heyer, Mejia and Refsnyder are definitely putting up the best stats so far, but that's to be expected from them.
The 2013 MLB Draft will see another group of Arizona Juniors picked up by teams including Brandon Dixon, Konner Wade, Johnny Field and possibly James Farris. The deal with how the draft works now is if a guy is drafted in the first ten rounds, he will most likely go pro. But after the tenth round, there is no room to negotiate a deal, and all the salaries are slotted, so it behooves players to come back for their senior year if they are not drafted in the first ten rounds. Dixon will most certainly go in the first ten rounds, and I expect Konner Wade and Johnny Field to go that high as well. Farris I don't think will, which would be great if he came back for his senior season.