Buller, Olson drafted by baseball’s Major
League
Ryan Olson picked by Mets, Dayton
Buller by SF Giants
Ryan Olson and Dayton Buller reflect on their Yosemite High Badger days
as they prepare for professional baseball careers with the Major League.
Two Yosemite High School graduates
who used to play baseball together at the park in Goldside Estates can dream
about the day they might play together on the same Major League team.
Ryan Olson, a 1998 YHS graduate
and a left-handed pitcher for the University of Nevada at Las Vegas (UNLV)
Rebels, was drafted by the New York Mets in the 10th round this past Tuesday.
The same day, Dayton Buller, a 1999 YHS graduate and a catcher for the Fresno
City College Rams, was drafted in the 18th round by the San Francisco Giants.
While the young men are both very
excited about this dream-come-true, they don’t know yet just what will happen
in the future.
Both expected to meet with
representatives from the respective teams sometime this week to sign papers.
Because he is in the top 10 draft
picks, Olson will probably play in the instructional league in the fall then in
February he would report to the METS organization for team practice. This
summer he will most likely play in the short season summer league.
Buller will be under the “draft
and follow” program whereby the Giants will watch him play at FCC next year. If
he has a good year, they will offer him money to sign with them two weeks
before next year’s draft.
He said they could watch him play
this summer and sign him before the school year starts but “that most likely
won’t happen.”
Both of the players missed a good
portion of this year’s season because of injuries.
Olson broke his right ankle in
January and missed half the season. He said he did not have a good year because
he couldn’t throw for six weeks. “That hurts,” he said.
Buller broke his ankle in the
first inning of the first game of the season. He only caught for 12 innings the
entire season. He was surprised to be drafted this year because of the injury
and the fact that he hardly played.
Olson has played for UNLV for the
past three years. The summer after his freshman year he played baseball in
Alaska and last year he played summer ball in Cape Cod. Playing at Cape Cod is
a possibility for this summer, depending on what happens with the METS.
Buller red-shirted the first year
at FCC (practiced with the team but didn’t play) and then only started one game
in his sophomore year before his injury. He plans to return to FCC next fall
and is hoping to stay healthy and play a full season.
Tuesday was an emotional day for
both young men and their families, especially their fathers.
Ryan Olson was on the telephone talking to the St.
Louis Cardinals Tuesday as his dad, Barry, listened to the draft picks on the
Internet. The Cardinals representative had just told Ryan that they were going
to draft him in the 10th round. However, the Mets were two rounds ahead so they
picked him first.
Ryan was just hanging up the
telephone from the conversation with the Cardinals when his dad told him his
name had just came over the Internet as a Mets draft.
Dayton was also listening to the
Internet. He was in his father’s office, as the 18th round of the draft was
coming to a close, he was getting ready to leave. Then, the last pick in the
18th round was called and it was Dayton. “I was pretty excited but more in
shock than anything,” he said. “I didn’t really expect it.”
He rushed into his dad’s office
(Kenny Buller) where he was interviewing a potential employee. “I really
disturbed that interview,” Dayton laughs.
Visiting with each other Wednesday morning, Buller and
Olson discussed playing ball for George McWherter at YHS and they talked about
the future.
Olson says Buller is “probably the
best pitcher who’s caught me.” They were together as pitcher and catcher one
year at YHS. They agree that it would be “pretty cool” if they could play
together some day on the same professional team.
They recalled their days of
playing ball together at the park in Goldside when they were 11 or 12 years of
age. “I struck him out all the time,” Olson chuckled, “but don’t print that.”
Both men have played baseball most
of their lives, starting at about five years of age. They played Little League
and they have played on summer teams. Buller is a catcher for the Fresno Barons
which is a California Coast League team.
They agree that Coach McWherter is
one of the best. Olson calls him the “best head coach I’ve played for” and
Buller says “He knows the game real well and teaches us everything we need to
know. He could be a college coach.”
Bob Siebenberg coached Buller on
the junior varsity team at YHS before he moved up to varsity.
Olson and Buller don’t know what
the future holds for them. They would both love to be playing on a major league
team in the next five years but they know they just have to wait and see. They
say that three years is “pretty quick” to make it to the majors, although they
agree that the odds are better for both of them than the average.
Catchers
are in high demand in the majors as are left-handed pitchers. Olson, who is
six-feet, five-inches, is tall for a pitcher and that is also an advantage.
If they don’t succeed as
professional baseball players, they both have a back-up plan. Olson
would return to UNLV and earn a degree in business. Buller would go into the
sports management field.
Olson and Buller join three other
YHS graduates who are playing baseball in a major league organization.
Ted Lilly is a starting pitcher
for the New York Yankees. Jay Spurgeon is a pitcher in the triple A league for
the Baltimore Orioles and Cory Miller is in the single A league for the Oakland
Athletics as a pitcher.
Olson and Buller agree that young
boys dream about a day like Tuesday as they are growing up. “It is pretty cool
to know you’re one of the top amateur players in the country,” Buller says.
Olson is the son of Barry and
Chris Olson. Buller is the son of Kenny Buller and Cyd Buller.