Xavier Baseball

Keller sits as Prairie sweeps Saints

Mitch Keller wore his Xavier High School uniform at the ballpark Friday night, but his playing days for the Saints apparently are over.

Prairie swept the Saints, 11-1 in five innings and 5-2, in a Mississippi Valley Conference doubleheader at the Prairie diamond.

Keller was selected in the second round of the Major League draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates Thursday night. He wants to sign a pro contract with the Pirates and does not plan to play for the Saints while a deal is hammered out.

Keller is the top pitcher and shortstop for the Saints and one of the best hitters, so the club will suffer in many ways without him on the field.

Trey Beckman drove in three runs for Prairie in the first game. Jared Cadena went 2-for-3 with two runs and two RBIs. Jalen Rima went 2-for-3 with two doubles and scored twice. Keenan Kilpatrick scored three runs and had two RBIs.

Drew Yanecek pitched the first four innings for the victory in the opener. He allowed only three hits and one run.

Beckman drove in two more runs in the second game for the Hawks. Bryce Grimm had two hits for Xavier. Ben Milks pitched five shutout innings in relief for the victory.

Game 1

Xavier     001 00 - 1 3 5
Prairie    024 14 - 11 8 0

Drahozal, O'Connell (5) and Arp. Yanecek, Havel-Pisarik (5) and Day. W - Yanecek. L - Drahozal. 2B - Cadena, Day, Rima 2, Hook.

Game 2

Xavier     200 000 0 - 2 5 0
Prairie     040 001 x - 5 7 0

Callahan, Freese (4) and Arp. Mougin, Milks (3) and Day. W - Milks. L - Callahan. 2B - Drahozal, Yanecek. 3B - Grimm. SB - Day, Rima.

Pirates make Keller a happy guy

Mitch Keller plans to play for the Xavier Saints in their doubleheader at Cedar Rapids Prairie Friday night, but he probably won't be around much longer.

The Pirates selected the 6-foot-3 right-hander from Xavier High School Thursday night in the second round of the Major League Draft with the 64th pick overall.

Keller said Friday morning he's interested in signing with Pittsburgh, rather than attending the University of North Carolina, but said no final decisions have been made.

The signing bonus for the 64th pick is slotted at $886,800, although final terms can be negotiated. The contract would include money for college, should he elect to attend school at some point.

Keller said he barely got any sleep Thursday night after hearing his name called in the draft while watching on MLB.com. It took nearly five hours, but he finally got the news he wanted.

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Grimm helps Saints top Davenport West

Bryce Grimm went 3-for-3 with a triple Wednesday night as the Xavier Saints defeated Davenport West, 8-4, at Ken Charipar Field.

Logan Clarahan went 2-for-4 with a double, home run and two RBIs for Xavier. Hunter Baldus was 2-for-3 with a triple and two RBIs. Zack Robinson was 2-for-4.

Ryan Flaherty was the winning pitcher, with relief help from Connor Frese.

Keller fans 10, Saints sweep Lions

Mitch Keller struck out 10 batters in four innings Monday as the Xavier Saints topped Linn-Mar, 5-3, in the first game of a Mississippi Valley Conference doubleheader at Linn-Mar.

The Saints also won the second game, 12-4.

Keller (1-1) walked three batters, allowed two hits and one unearned run. Bryce Grimm pitched the final three innings for Xavier.

Nolan Arp went 2-for-2 with two RBIs for the Saints. Grimm also had two hits. Manny Jeffery went 3-for-4 for Linn-Mar and scored twice.

Grimm went 3-for-5 for Xavier in the second game with a triple, home run and three RBIs. Logan Clarahan scored three runs. Ryan Flaherty drove in two runs and Max Hammerberg had two hits.

Adam Bradley went 3-for-4 with three doubles and three RBIs for Linn-Mar in the nightcap. Brandt Ollinger had two hits.

Adam Pick struck out nine batters in 3.2 innings for the Saints, but also walked six batters in the second game.

Game 1

Xavier       031 000 1 - 5 6 1
Linn-Mar    100 020 0 - 3 6 1

Keller, Grimm (5). Hilsenbeck, Jeffery (5), Wyant (7). W - Keller. L - Hilsenbeck. 2B - Grimm, Jeffery, Jacobs. 3B - Yoke. SB - Jeffery, Gassmann.

Game 2

Xavier       003 701 1 - 12 11 0
Linn-Mar    000 130 0 -  4  8  2

Pick, Even (4), Hammerberg (5). Larson, Bogert (4), Gassmann (5), Crawford (7), Ollinger (7). W - Pick. L - Larson. 2B - Ollinger, Bradley 3. 3B -Grimm. HR - Grimm. SB - Keller, Jeffery 2, Larson, Allaman.