Just one year ag, Bryan Augenstein had wrapped up his junior season at UF and was awaiting his professional fate like hundreds of players across the country will be today.
Major League Baseball's First-Year Player Draft kicks off at 2 p.m., and many of those selected will be faced with a difficult decision: Should I stay or should I go?
For Augenstein, who was chosen by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the seventh round of the 2007 draft, the decision was that much harder because the UF program was in limbo after Pat McMahon was fired as head coach.
"It was really tough," Augenstein said. "I waited to sign because I wanted to see who they were bringing in."
He was familiar with the program's new face because coach Kevin O'Sullivan had recruited him at Clemson when he was a senior in high school. Augenstein visited Gainesville a few times during the summer to talk with the new coach. But in the end, Augenstein chose to sign on the dotted line.
"I just felt like it was the right time for me to sign and go pro," he said. "As a pitcher, the younger you are, the better you are because you only have so many years in your arm."
Given the success the towering right-hander has had so far, it would be hard to argue. Augenstein has dominated at Class A South Bend with a 3-1 record and a sparkling 2.09 ERA. His 61 strikeouts lead the Silver Hawks' staff to go along with an impressive juxtaposition of just nine walks in 73 innings pitched.
His performance has earned him a spot on the 2008 Midwest League All-Star Team.
In a quirky twist of fate, Augenstein happened to face former Gator teammate Matt LaPorta, now with the Milwaukee Brewers organization, in his first professional at-bat. Both players were assigned to their respective teams' short-season rookie club after signing. In the lineup as designated hitter, LaPorta greeted his former teammate rather rudely.
"It was pretty crazy," Augenstein said. "He hit a home run off of me, and the next at-bat I ended up striking him out. He got me, and then I got him too. I talked to him before the game, and it was fun.
"I'm just glad all throughout my college career I never had to pitch to him because he can hit anything."
Another former teammate of Augenstein's is likely to be drafted fairly high today, and he has no doubts that, regardless of what shortstop Cole Figueroa decides, he will be successful.
"He's a really consistent player," Augenstein said. "Either way it's going to be a good decision for him because I think the scouts see he's got some talent, and in the future, he's going to be a good one."
The same could be said of Augenstein, who continues to work on developing his changeup while adjusting to life in the minors and the grind of playing baseball every day.
"It's definitely different because it's baseball 24/7," he said. "It's living out of hotels. It's not a very fun life being a professional baseball player outside of baseball. You just have to love what you do."
