Catawba College senior pitcher Craig Brooks (Monroe, N.C./Parkwood HS) was selected in the seventh round by the Chicago Cubs in the 2015 MLB Player Draft. He was pick #203 overall and is the highest draft pick for Catawba since Brian Boltz was taken in the second round (57 overall) in 1989. Brooks joins Boltz, Kevin Hemphill and Mike Dickens as Catawba players taken in the first 10 rounds.
Brooks becomes the first Catawba player drafted by the Cubs and is the 12th Catawba player selected in the draft since 2008. He will join Jerry Sands, JJ Jankowski, Nick Lomascolo, Chris Dula, Paul Kronenfeld and Joe Watson as current Indians in the professional ranks.
In 2015, Brooks earned the Brett Tomko Award as the top pitcher in NCAA II and the Josh Willingham Award as the NCAA II Most Valuable Player. He was also awarded the ABCA/Rawlings Gold Bat Award as the National Player of the Year and was the ABCA National Pitcher of the Year. He was a consensus first team All-American.
Brooks was 9-1 with a 1.45 ERA as a senior with three saves. Over his career, he posted a career mark of 23-4 which ranks him 12th all-time in wins despite only starting for two years. His 12 saves are the sixth most in school history. Brooks finished with a 1.94 ERA over his four years, becoming only the third pitcher to finish a career with an ERA under 2.00.
Brooks set a school record in 2015 with 158 strikeouts, which led NCAA II. Over his 99 innings on the mound he allowed only 54 hits and walked 34 for a 0.89 WHIP. He logged just the sixth no-hitter in school history on February 23 vs. Brevard.
