Cardinals select ASU star in first round of draft

ST. LOUIS -- The St. Louis Cardinals chose Arizona State third baseman Brett Wallace with the 13th pick in the baseball draft Thursday.

Wallace, 21, was particularly of interest to the team due to his hitting skills, said Jeff Luhnow, the club's vice president of player development.

"Unquestionably, the bat was the big attraction," Luhnow said. "First, he's a pure hitter. He's really come on as a doubles and over-the-fence type of hitter the last couple of years.

"There's not a lot of question marks concerning his bat. He has shown us what he needs to do with a wood bat. His value to us is what he does at home plate."

Luhnow said the Cardinals scouted Wallace extensively.

"Our scouts saw him in high school in Napa Valley," Luhnow said. "I saw him as a freshman at Arizona State. Last year, I saw him in a tournament, and I was impressed by his bat.

"I watched him this year in five or six games. We had seven or eight scouts see him over the course of this year. He's a tremendous hitter. The hardest thing to do in this game is hit a baseball."

Wallace is the sixth position player drafted by the Cardinals in the first round since 2003.

The 6-foot-1, 245-pound Wallace bats left and throws right.

"He doesn't look like a prototypical outfielder or third baseman, but he has some speed," Luhnow said. "He stole 16 bases this year. For a big guy, he runs fairly well. I've been impressed by how he's developed at third base this year."

Luhnow said the club looks at him as a third baseman, left fielder or first baseman.

"He's in the College World Series right now so we can't talk to him, but we don't think he'll be difficult to sign," Luhnow said. "We think he'll want to go out and play right away."

Wallace is hitting .414 with 81 RBIs and 83 runs for Arizona State, which has a game coming up with Fresno State in an NCAA super regional game. He has 21 homers and 12 doubles.

As a sophomore, Wallace was the Pac-10's Triple Crown winner and Player of the Year. Wallace had one of the best seasons in Sun Devil history. He finished the season with a .404 average and 107 hits and led the conference in batting average, slugging percentage (.687), runs scored (75), hits, RBI (78), homers (16) and total bases (182).

Wallace was selected in the 42nd round (1,253 overall) by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2005 draft, but did not sign.

The Cardinals last drafted this high at No. 13 in 2000. With that choice, St. Louis selected outfielder Shaun Boyd, who was released six years later.

In the compensatory round with the 39th pick, the Cardinals chose right-handed pitcher Michael Lynn out the University of Mississippi. He is the career strikeout leader at Ole Miss. Luhnow said the club took Lynn because of his repertoire -- he has four pitches -- and impressive command.

"He's an imposing presence on the mound," Luhnow said. "He's a guy that will eat innings in pro ball and should be a guy that will last a long time."

With the 59th selection, St. Louis chose first baseman/outfielder Shane Peterson of Long Beach State. With the 91st pick, the Cardinals chose shortstop Ernest Vasquez of Durango High School in Las Vegas, Nev.

Their final choice of the first day was right-handed pitcher Scott Gorgen of UC-Irvine with the 125th selection.

The draft concludes today.