Oakes drafted in 11th round

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He's gone. No reason to stick around, I don't think his draft status can get much higher as he is much more of a pitcher than he is a thrower or stuff guy. Also, he would lose all leverage if he went back for his senior year. I think he can expect a bonus of around $100k,with money to cover his tuition for his last year of college, if he were to come back for his senior year and get drafted even 5 rounds higher he would probably receive a smaller bonus.

It was fun watching TJ pitch these last few years, I wish him the best.
 

If I had to guess I would say he comes back for his Senior season. I expected him to be taken around the 6th or 7th round and think he will be able to increase his draft value with another year where he has the potential to be the best pitcher in the B1G and also get the Gophers back to the NCAA tournament.
 

I don't think it is 100% that he is gone. The wild card to me is that his dad is the pitching coach. This is literally the last time he will be able to be coached by his dad. Spending one more year also gives him one last chance to experience playing in another regional. Those are priceless memories to have forever. It depends on the individual but sometimes things like that can trump banking some cash from a signing bonus.

If he stays, he can also complete his degree (I assume). Finally, if he has another banner season as a Senior he may lose some leverage but he will still get paid when the dust settles.

I do think if he comes back, the Gophers are going to be primed for another Regional run.
 

Unless the Rockies low ball him or end up not offering because they used their "pool" of money for the draft, TJ will not be back. I know money isn't everything, but you are looking at a huge sum of money to lose out as. Even if TJ has a great year next year (which I am sure he would/will) his draft status will not change much because scouts are looking for guys who throw a lot harder than TJ and have better stuff. You are talking about taking an $80k bonus cut just because you lose out on all that leverage. College seniors do not get paid in the draft, why would a team pay them anything after their senior year? They can't go anywhere else to improve their status, so teams understand that if the kid wants to play ball, he is going to sign for whatever they offer him. They take college seniors as depth guys in the minors and give them a plane ticket and a few bucks, but nothing like the $100k, plus scholarship for his remaining year of school he will get if he gets now. Playing in the minors you do not make a good living (I believe Low A ball players take home roughly $1500/month, but that is only paid during the season, not year around. And if these guys want any chance of making it to the big leagues, they have to train when they are done with ball, making it difficult to find a job making much money. Also, the pro teams want to get their mitts on players as early as possible, they do not to lose out on an entire year of development in their players.

Needless to say, there is no way he comes back to school, unless like I said, they end up not offering him anything because of the new draft rules.
 


BoogeyMan said:
Unless the Rockies low ball him or end up not offering because they used their "pool" of money for the draft, TJ will not be back. I know money isn't everything, but you are looking at a huge sum of money to lose out as. Even if TJ has a great year next year (which I am sure he would/will) his draft status will not change much because scouts are looking for guys who throw a lot harder than TJ and have better stuff. You are talking about taking an $80k bonus cut just because you lose out on all that leverage. College seniors do not get paid in the draft, why would a team pay them anything after their senior year? They can't go anywhere else to improve their status, so teams understand that if the kid wants to play ball, he is going to sign for whatever they offer him. They take college seniors as depth guys in the minors and give them a plane ticket and a few bucks, but nothing like the $100k, plus scholarship for his remaining year of school he will get if he gets now. Playing in the minors you do not make a good living (I believe Low A ball players take home roughly $1500/month, but that is only paid during the season, not year around. And if these guys want any chance of making it to the big leagues, they have to train when they are done with ball, making it difficult to find a job making much money. Also, the pro teams want to get their mitts on players as early as possible, they do not to lose out on an entire year of development in their players.

Needless to say, there is no way he comes back to school, unless like I said, they end up not offering him anything because of the new draft rules.
Click to expand...

All great points. However, there is a chance he comes back for one or all three of the reasons I mentioned. As an example, take David Starn, Kent State's ace. He was drafted in the 12th round last year but came back for his senior season. Why, I have no idea. However, his team is two wins away from the CWS. If the Golden Flashes make it to Omaha I have to think he'll believe he made the correct decision no matter what he ends up getting paid as a 7th round draft pick this year. That experience/memory is priceless. I will assume winning the MAC, MAC tourney, and Gary Regional are as well.
 

I want to wish TJ the best of luck in his pro baseball career and want to thank him for his great contribution to Gopher baseball and congrats on a great career to this point it has been very fun to watch him and even play against in some of the legion state tournaments a few years ago, he's a great player and a great person.
From TJ Oakes twitter
TJ Oakes ‏@Oakes39
Officially part of the Colorado Rockies organization!
 

I am so proud and happy for him. I know him personally so it was awesome to see him get drafted, though I was very disappointed because he should have gone around the 5th round range.
 

"BoogeyMan" laid out a convincing case on why TJ Oakes would sign and was 100% correct. As a fan I'm going to miss him as a Gopher. Congrats to TJ and hope he has a long and successful career in professional baseball.

Need someone to step up as next year's Friday starter now.
 



So with Oakes and Lubinsky gone anyone have any guesses for the weekend rotation next year?
Right now I would probably go with Snelten, Windle, and Meyer.
 

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