Cardinals draft Stanford second baseman

Colin Walsh couldn't listen to the Major League Baseball Amateur Draft. The Stanford second baseman said he would have gone crazy doing so. So Walsh found out the old-fashioned way he had been drafted -- when around midday he got a call from St. Louis Cardinals area scout Matthew Swanson. Walsh was taken by the Cards in the 13th round, becoming the first Stanford player to be selected in this year's draft. Having solidified himself as legit second baseman both sides of the ball, Walsh stands a decent chance of being paired over the middle with Aragon shortstop Sam Tuivailala, who was selected by St. Louis in the third round. With Stanford's season ending on a disappointing two-and-out appearance in regional postseason play over the weekend, Walsh sounds eager to get back onto the diamond. Going pro isn't yet a sealed deal for the junior, though he is optimistic his career as a Cardinal is about to go plural. "As of right now, I'm not sure," Walsh said. "But as of right now I'm more likely to sign than not." Although they selected four shortstops, Walsh was the only second baseman drafted by the Cardinals in the first 30 rounds. The draft concludes today with the final 20 rounds of the 50-round event. With so many underclassmen on the roster, Stanford stands a chance of having its smallest draft class in decades. The only other Cardinal to be drafted thus far is outfielder Kellen Kiilsgaard, selected in the 30th round by Houston. Walsh paced Stanford with seven home runs and a .493 slugging percentage this season. He also tied freshman Kenny Diekroeger for the team lead in RBIs with 41. Off the field, Walsh was a valuable team leader as well, helping lay the groundwork for the future with 12 freshmen -- including four starters -- on the Cardinal roster. "We were able to look up to Colin with how he went about his business and how he played the game," Diekroeger said. "He was a good role model for all of us." Pitching an afterthought for San Francisco and Oakland The Giants bucked the pitching-intensive draft trend for which they've become notorious. In each of the first three rounds the Giants selected a position player -- Fullerton center fielder Gary Brown in the first round, Virginia outfielder Jarrett Parker in the second and Kansas State shortstop Carter Jurica in the third. Yet the A's managed to outdo them by not selecting a pitcher until the fifth round. Oakland selected University of Texas at Arlington center fielder Michael Choice in the first round, Florida high school shortstop Yordy Cabrera in the second, Georgia high school outfielder Aaron Shipman in the third and California high school third baseman Chad Lewis in the fourth. The Giants did draft a pitcher with a familiar name in the later rounds, though, selecting University of Kansas right-hander Brett Bochy -- manager Bruce Bochy's son -- in the 20th round. Brett Bochy underwent Tommy John surgery in March, and has yet to resume baseball activities. Kansas head coach Ritch Price said the surgery was deemed a success. "Obviously before he got hurt and had to have Tommy John surgery, he was one of the more dominant pitchers in the nation," Price said. "His strikeout numbers-to-innings pitched were incredible." Bochy went 2-0 with a 0.78 ERA and five saves, notching 34 strikeouts against seven walks before his season-ending injury. He is a fastball-slider pitcher with excellent command who sits between 91-93 mph, according to Price. Draft roundup Other local draftees include: Cal -- right-hander Dixon Anderson, sixth round, Orioles; right-hander Brian Diemer, sixth round, Angels; first baseman Mark Canha, seventh round, Marlins; shortstop Brian Guinn, 11th round, Padres. Santa Clara University -- catcher Tommy Medica, 14th round, Padres; catcher Geoff Klein, 15th round, Cardinals; right-hander Nate Garcia, 16th round, Rays. University of San Francisco -- right-hander Doug Murray, 19th round, White Sox; shortstop Derek Poppert, 30th round, Mariners. Cal State East Bay -- right-hander Devin Grigg, 17th round, Twins. Prep and juco draftees include: Palo Alto High -- center fielder Joc Pederson, 11th round, Dodgers. Chabot College -- shortstop Nick Bartolone, sixth round, Indians. Ohlone College -- outfielder Steven Ramos, 22nd round, Cardinals; left-hander Roberto Padilla, 23rd round, D-Backs. Sierra College -- catcher Michael Quesada, 24th round, Twins.