Photo by: Zac Zeman zaczeman.com
Pope Signs Free-Agent Deal with St. Louis Cardinals
7/14/2021 10:19:00 AM | Baseball
RIVERSIDE – Bryan Pope has signed a professional contract with the St. Louis Cardinals. It continues California Baptist University's strong track record of sending pitchers onto the next level in Major League Baseball.
A total of 23 Lancer pitchers have signed on with MLB teams in Coach Gary Adcock's 18 years. In all, CBU has produced 32 total MLB signees (25 draft picks, seven free-agent signings) in Adcock's tenure, which includes Damon Keith who was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 18th round at 522 overall on Tuesday.
Pope solidified himself as a key part of CBU's starting rotation over the last two years and earned an All-Western Athletic Conference Second Team award in 2021. The starting pitcher went 8-4 with a 4.15 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 76 strikeouts over 15 starts. He logged a total of 80.1 innings and averaged 8.51 strikeouts per nine innings this season.
Last year, Pope maintained a 3-1 record, 2.84 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and .194 batting average against in the shortened campaign.
LANCERS AT A GLANCE
CBU just completed the third of four transition seasons to full NCAA Division I membership. It was one of the best transition seasons ever, as the Lancers won a share of the 2021 WAC title for the second time in as many opportunities and went 40-16 overall.
The Lancers are the second team to win 40 games in one of its first two full transition seasons to Division I out of 49 teams that have made the move since 1998. Dallas Baptist was the first team to win 40 games or more at 44 overall in 2004.
Forty wins are a new single-season high for CBU in the D-I era after it won 35 games in 2019. The Lancers have gone 75-35 over their first two full years in Division I (2019 and 2021), which is the second-most wins by a program in its first two full D-I seasons. Dallas Baptist (76-39) is the only team to win more than 75 games through its first two full Division I campaigns out of the 49 teams who have made the move to D-I since 1998.
CBU'S NEXT-LEVEL SUCCESS
If Keith signs on with the Dodgers, the Lancers are set to have five players in minor league baseball this year, with Tyson Miller, Logan Rinehart and Andrew Bash already there.
Miller is the highest draft pick in team history after the Chicago Cubs selected him in the fourth round at 134 overall in 2016. Miller is still in professional baseball with the Texas Rangers' Triple-A affiliate, the Round Rock Express.
Two former CBU baseball players have reached the top level of MLB over the last four years. Trevor Oaks became the first Lancer to appear in an MLB game when he started on the mound for the Kansas City Royals on April 28, 2018. Miller became the second CBU baseball player to appear in an MLB game when he started for the Cubs on August 17, 2020.
At least one Lancer has been selected in the MLB Draft in 11 of the last 12 years, including 13 top-20 and two top-10 rounders. The lone exception over the last 12 years was 2020, when MLB condensed the draft down to five rounds in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. CBU did see one of its recruits, Kalai Rosario, drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the fifth round at 158 overall in 2020.
𝑺𝑰𝑮𝑵𝑬𝑫 ✍️
— California Baptist Baseball (@CBUbaseball) July 14, 2021
Congratulations to Bryan Pope on signing a free-agent deal with the @Cardinals. He's the 23rd Lancer pitcher to sign an @MLB deal in Coach Gary Adcock's 18 years. #LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/siz5OH10ED
A total of 23 Lancer pitchers have signed on with MLB teams in Coach Gary Adcock's 18 years. In all, CBU has produced 32 total MLB signees (25 draft picks, seven free-agent signings) in Adcock's tenure, which includes Damon Keith who was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 18th round at 522 overall on Tuesday.
Pope solidified himself as a key part of CBU's starting rotation over the last two years and earned an All-Western Athletic Conference Second Team award in 2021. The starting pitcher went 8-4 with a 4.15 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 76 strikeouts over 15 starts. He logged a total of 80.1 innings and averaged 8.51 strikeouts per nine innings this season.
Last year, Pope maintained a 3-1 record, 2.84 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and .194 batting average against in the shortened campaign.
👏👏👏
— California Baptist Baseball (@CBUbaseball) February 20, 2021
Bryan Pope's night is done and what a night it was.
9️⃣ Ks
0️⃣ R
1️⃣ H
2️⃣ BB
5️⃣ IP#LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/nlP7Ed9WSO
LANCERS AT A GLANCE
CBU just completed the third of four transition seasons to full NCAA Division I membership. It was one of the best transition seasons ever, as the Lancers won a share of the 2021 WAC title for the second time in as many opportunities and went 40-16 overall.
The Lancers are the second team to win 40 games in one of its first two full transition seasons to Division I out of 49 teams that have made the move since 1998. Dallas Baptist was the first team to win 40 games or more at 44 overall in 2004.
💥 4⃣0⃣ 💥
— California Baptist Baseball (@CBUbaseball) June 11, 2021
CBU continued one of the best-ever transitions to NCAA Division I in 2021. The Lancers were one of three West Coast @NCAACWS schools to win 40 games this regular season. #LanceUp⚔️ pic.twitter.com/sCZ4KSoYtk
Forty wins are a new single-season high for CBU in the D-I era after it won 35 games in 2019. The Lancers have gone 75-35 over their first two full years in Division I (2019 and 2021), which is the second-most wins by a program in its first two full D-I seasons. Dallas Baptist (76-39) is the only team to win more than 75 games through its first two full Division I campaigns out of the 49 teams who have made the move to D-I since 1998.
CBU'S NEXT-LEVEL SUCCESS
If Keith signs on with the Dodgers, the Lancers are set to have five players in minor league baseball this year, with Tyson Miller, Logan Rinehart and Andrew Bash already there.
Miller is the highest draft pick in team history after the Chicago Cubs selected him in the fourth round at 134 overall in 2016. Miller is still in professional baseball with the Texas Rangers' Triple-A affiliate, the Round Rock Express.
Two former CBU baseball players have reached the top level of MLB over the last four years. Trevor Oaks became the first Lancer to appear in an MLB game when he started on the mound for the Kansas City Royals on April 28, 2018. Miller became the second CBU baseball player to appear in an MLB game when he started for the Cubs on August 17, 2020.
At least one Lancer has been selected in the MLB Draft in 11 of the last 12 years, including 13 top-20 and two top-10 rounders. The lone exception over the last 12 years was 2020, when MLB condensed the draft down to five rounds in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. CBU did see one of its recruits, Kalai Rosario, drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the fifth round at 158 overall in 2020.
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