James Loney

James Anthony Loney is a first baseman in Major League Baseball who plays for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Loney had a stellar prep career at Elkins High School in Missouri City, Texas . He hit .509 his senior season and also accumulated a record of 9-1 with a 1.80 earned run average as a pitcher, striking out 106 batters in 54 innings. After his senior year in 2002, he was named Player of the Year by Houston 5A Baseball, the Houston Chronicle and the Texas High School Writers Association, and was the Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year . Prior to the draft, Baseball America tabbed him as the... best pure hitter in the draft, as having the second-best professional debut by a high school player selected and the second-closest high school player to reaching the major leagues, sliding Daniel Kelly Calhoun down to the third-best in MLB history. Loney was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first round . He had signed with Baylor University to play college baseball, but opted to sign a pro contract.
more