Oakland Athletics select North Carolina A&T slugger Xavier Macklin in 2011 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft

Xavier Macklin

GREENSBORO, N.C. - North Carolina A&T slugger Xavier Macklin is a member of the Oakland Athletics organization. On the second day of the First-Year Major League Baseball Player Draft, Macklin was selected in the 12th round as the 376th pick. Macklin is the first Aggie taken in the draft since the St. Louis Cardinals selected C.J. Beatty in the 26th round in 2009.

Macklin, a junior out of Rocky Mount, N.C., posted impressive power numbers throughout his Aggies career. He hit .357 with 49 home runs and 183 RBIs as he set school marks in home runs, RBIs and slugging percentage. Macklin's reputation for power can be measured in his .705 career slugging percentage. He ends his collegiate career with three first-team All-MEAC honors.

Macklin said he was informed about being drafted at approximately 5 p.m. Apprehension and nervousness drove him away from following the draft hours before the Athletics selected him. Macklin received a phone call from a friend notifying him of the good news. A local A's scout who lives in Greensboro made the official call for the organization.

"I can't describe this feeling right now," said Macklin. "It's crazy. It's surreal. It's like I'm not even here right now."

The 2011 season solidified Macklin's status as a MLB prospect. He hit .355 with 22 home runs and 67 RBIs. Nationally, he ranks second in home runs and home runs per game. He owns the fourth-best slugging percentage in the nation and his RBIs per game ranks him 11th.

"He really deserves this," said N.C. A&T head coach Keith Shumate. "People recognize how much talent this young man has, but I don't think people know how hard he worked to get to this point. He had a legendary career at A&T."

Macklin is one of only two MEAC players who have been selected thus far. Bethune-Cookman catcher Peter O'Brien went in the third round to the Colorado Rockies. Macklin becomes the seventh player under Shumate to be taken in the MLB Draft. He is the fourth Aggie in the last five years to be selected, and earned the second highest draft position of any Aggie selected during the Shumate era. Duron LaGrande was drafted in the 10th round by the Montreal Expos in 2004.

Courtesy: NC A&T Sports Information

North Carolina A&T will lose baseball coach after season

Coach Keith Shumate

Baseball coach Keith Shumate, who has led N.C. A&T to the MEAC championship game four of the last six seasons, resigned Tuesday effective July 31.

Shumate led the Aggies to a school-record 31 victories last season, and his 2005 team won the MEAC championship and a berth in the NCAA tournament. Shumate, now in his 15th season, has 294 victories and counting.

When Shumate took over in 1997, A&T was coming off a 4-45 season. Since then he has coached 17 All-MEAC first-teamers, 11 players who signed pro contracts, 5 major-league draft picks and 3 All-Americans.

Aggies Hit Four Home Runs, Sweep UMES

GREENSBORO, N.C. - Injuries to the North Carolina A&T pitching staff and to its everyday lineup has made the game of baseball tough for the Aggies this season.

But on Sunday it was back to the good old days. Several North Carolina A&T batters had multiple-hit afternoons, and the Aggies didn't have to use a lot of arms to work numerous innings. The result was a 14-3 and 12-5 doubleheader sweep of Maryland Eastern Shore at War Memorial Stadium.

Marquis Riley, Xavier Macklin, Luke Tendler and Dairio Little all homered on Sunday. Little had had three RBIs in the second game, while Little had two. Carvell Copeland went 3-for-4 with three runs scored. N.C. A&T put the second game away with an eight-run fifth inning.

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NCA&T Aggies Close Out Series With Loss to FAMU

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Florida A&M took two out of three from North Carolina A&T on Sunday with an 11-1 victory. The Aggies were held to just two hits on the afternoon. Florida A&M starter David Duncan struck out 11 and picked up the win to improve to 2-3. Brent Moore (1-4) endured the loss.

The Aggies only run of the day came in the sixth inning. Marquis Riley hit an RBI single to right field to score Carvell Copeland who reached on an error and stole second base. Tobi Adeyemi led the Rattlers by going 3-for-5 with four RBIs.

The Aggies dropped to 8-18 overall and 2-3 in the MEAC. They will be back in action Tuesday evening as they head to Boone, N.C., to face Appalachian State at 6.



Rattlers take series with Aggies with 11-1 win

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (April 3) - The Florida A&M Baseball team was able to bounce back in game three as the Rattlers defeated North Carolina A&T, 11-1 to win the series in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference game, here Sunday afternoon at Moore-Kittles Field.

FAMU (10-22, 2-4 MEAC) pounded out 12 hits, while N.C. A&T (8-18, 2-3 MEAC) garnered two.

The Rattlers were led by Tobi Adeyemi as he went three-for-five from the plate, driving in four runs and scoring one, while both Andre McKoy and Marquis Riley finished with a hit a piece for the Aggies.

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FAMU vs NC A&T Gallery

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Courtesy: North Carolina A&T State University Sports Information and Florida A&M University Sports Information.

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