Surprise! You've been drafted

By JOHN COTEY AND BRANDON WRIGHT
Published June 7, 2006

Karen Tullo and son Aaron Tullo had jobs to do Tuesday. Aaron's was busing tables at an Outback Steakhouse in St. Petersburg. Karen's was keeping her son informed via text message when his friends were picked in the baseball draft.

Both jobs got a lot harder at about 7 p.m., when Karen had to excitedly type in a familiar name: A-a-r-o-n T-u-l-l-o.

"I was cleaning a table when my phone started vibrating," said Aaron, a recent St. Petersburg grad. "I was shocked. I was expecting to get drafted, but not on the first day."

Tullo, who spent the past 18 months working his way back from arm problems, including Tommy John surgery, was taken in the 17th round by the Brewers, one of the teams that heavily scouted the right-hander this year.

Tullo was expecting to go late in the draft, around the 30th and 40th rounds, because he made it clear he wanted to be a draft-and-follow player. He will attend St. Petersburg College next season, hoping to improve his stock for next year's draft or make Milwaukee pay him well enough to keep him from re-entering the player pool.

"I feel like I can go a lot higher," said Tullo, whose surgically repaired arm is just about 100 percent.

Tullo has proved he has patience and had to do it again Tuesday. After finding out he had been drafted, he had to finish his shift at work, leaving at 9 p.m. to join friends and family for a celebratory dinner.

Clearwater Central Catholic's Riley Cooper spent Tuesday working out, getting therapy on his just-about healed right arm and hanging out with friends.

As far as he was concerned, the first day of the draft was over for him about two weeks ago, when he said he made it clear in a meeting with the Phillies that he was unwavering in his commitment to the University of Florida.

According to Larry Cooper, the same message was sent to other teams interested in drafting his son.

"It was obviously a hard choice, but having an opportunity to play at Florida, that's ultimately what I want to do," said Riley Cooper, who will play receiver in the fall and outfield in the spring.

That didn't stop Philadelphia from taking a flier on Cooper in the 15th round, 457th overall.

Cooper, 6 feet 4, 212 pounds, was rated by most recruiting services as a first-rounder when the spring began. He was touted for his blazing speed and raw power, shining in a number of showcases during the summer before his senior season.

But he sustained a season-ending injury in March when he was involved in a late-night scrape in Clearwater. Cooper sustained a deep cut to his right arm throwing a punch through a car window.

According to Larry Cooper, Philadelphia told him it was going to take Riley Cooper with the 18th overall pick in the draft before being talked out of it. "They were asking us if they drafted Riley in the first round, would he sign, and we said no," Larry Cooper said. "As of (Monday) night, they wanted to take us in the 10th-15th round and pay us first-round money and see if they can get us up in Philadelphia by the 25th. That's still their plan."

Riley Cooper said he will report to Gainesville on June 27. Gator football coach Urban Meyer was one of the first to call after his selection, to congratulate one of his prize recruits and make sure he won't wilt under the pressure from the Phillies to sign.

"I don't think so," Cooper said.

When Tim Bascom left Dunedin three years ago for the University of Central Florida, he didn't give much thought to a pro career. After all, Bascom received only a couple of offers from Division II schools before signing with UCF late in his senior year.

"I didn't really think about the majors that much," Bascom said. "I just wanted to go play ball for four more years and get a good education."

As it turns out, Bascom might never play that fourth year in a Golden Knights uniform.

Bascom was drafted by the Padres in the sixth round (138th overall). "This has been a great joyride," he said. "It's an honor to go to an organization that develops its young players like the Padres."

Bascom watched the draft online with his family in Dunedin but found out in an unconventional fashion. Bascom was on the phone with St. Louis, which indicated it would be drafting him. However, Cardinals officials saw Bascom's name disappear from the board and told the 6-foot-2, 200-pound right-hander the Padres had selected him.

"It was nerve-racking because I had been on the phone with Toronto, Milwaukee and then St. Louis," Bascom said. "I was just thrilled when it happened."

Bascom, a junior, has one year left at UCF and said he would wait to talk to the Padres before deciding whether to sign with them. "If I don't sign, I have a full ride at UCF waiting for me," he said. "And if I do, San Diego has a history of moving their players up through their system quickly."

Bascom went 10-2 with a 3.10 ERA as a sophomore, striking out 113 in 1131/3 innings. That earned him preseason All-America honors. But Bascom came down with mononucleosis and pneumonia before the year, and a leg injury lingered all season. He still finished 5-6 with a 2.47 ERA, earning first-team Conference USA honors. "I'm just glad (this season) is over," Bascom said. "It just started bad, and I was never really 100 percent."

[Last modified June 7, 2006, 06:31:37]