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By Terri Scales
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Thursday, June 05, 2008 |
 Eastern Kentucky University head baseball coach Elvis Dominguez knew he had a special talent in pitcher Christian Friedrich when he recruited him out of Chicago’s Loyola Academy four years ago. But a potential first-round draft pick? “If you had told me when he first got here that he would be a first round pick, I would have said that’s great, and I would love for it to happen,” Dominguez said this week.
Turns out that’s exactly what happened when the Colorado Rockies selected the 6-3 lefty with the 25th overall pick on Thursday.
Friedrich entered the draft rated the sixth-best MLB prospect in college baseball by Baseball America. During his junior year as the Colonels’ ace he compiled a 5-1 record with a 1.78 ERA, striking out 86 batters and allowing a scant 15 runs in just over 65 innings of work. He was named a collegiate baseball Second-Team All-American just days before the draft.
“It really doesn’t matter where I end up as long as I can play and contribute,” Friedrich said earlier in the week, before the Evanston, Illinois native admitted it would be nice to wind up with a team close to home. “I am a White Sox fan and they have the 8th pick, so it would be nice to come home and stay home. All of the regional teams have picks in the top 20, so that would be great for my friends and family.”
Friedrich has been making an impact since his first conference start for Eastern Kentucky in March 2006. During that game against Morehead State, Friedrich threw the Colonels’ first no-hitter since 1992, and the fifth in school history. He went on to finish his freshman season with a 10-2 record, and lead the Ohio Valley Conference in ERA (1.98) and strike outs per game (13) – the latter mark ranking second in the nation – earning OVC Freshman of the Year honors.
 Building on gains made during that landmark season Friedrich, and his coaches worked to fine-tune his overall game – both physically and mentally. According to Dominguez, Friedrich arrived at Eastern Kentucky with solid breaking ball, so they focused on increasing his pitch variety. “His curve ball was always there, so we worked with him and developed a slider and change up in college,” Dominguez said.
“I wanted to strengthen my mental game and my control, and immediately started making improvements the fall of my freshman year,” Friedrich said. “I came in at 185 pounds and am at 208 right now. They have a great weight program that helped me increase my velocity and stamina. I wanted to focus on becoming a complete pitcher and being able to handle all situations.”
The first-round selection pick and praise from his college coach validate that he has done just that. “Christian made himself a first rounder by his work ethic,” Dominguez said. “He does so much to prepare at both the physical and mental level.”
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