AZUSA, Calif. -- The second day of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft claimed a pair of Azusa Pacific pitchers, junior Jonny Bravo and senior Andrew Shive, giving the Cougars 3 selections in the 2008 draft, the most in a single draft in program history.

“I’m really happy for all 3 guys,” said Cougar head coach Paul Svagdis, who has now produced 7 MLB draft picks in 6 years at the helm of the Azusa Pacific baseball program. “They’re 3 great men, I’m excited for their future, and I think the whole program is excited for them. Having 3 guys taken is a testament to the great players who have played in the program, guys like Stephen Vogt and Scott Hodsdon, as well as the current guys. Players like Stephen Kohatsu and Matt Venegas, who I feel both deserve a shot to play at the next level also, are part of the core guys that surrounded them and allowed the others to be in the spotlight.”

Yesterday, the New York Mets made Kirk Nieuwenhuis the third-highest draft pick in Azusa Pacific history.

“I’m excited to have the chance to go on and play,” said Shive. “It’s just surreal right now. I knew the Yankees had seen me pitch late in the season, but I hadn’t heard anything until today when they picked me. It was a real shocker. This still feels like a dream to me, and I’m just going to wake up from it any time now. I couldn’t be happier.”

Bravo was a 23rd-round selection of the St. Louis Cardinals, going with the 695th overall pick, while Shive was snapped up with the New York Yankees’ 35th-round choice, 1,070th overall.

“My scout called me to see if I was watching the draft,” said Bravo. “I looked online and saw the Cardinals were coming up soon, and right when that happened, my name popped up and my family and I just went crazy. My stomach just dropped, and I didn’t know what to say.”

Over the past 2 seasons, 5 Azusa Pacific players have been chosen to continue their baseball career professional in the 2-day draft, and the 2008 event was the second straight season and the ninth season overall in which the Cougars sent at least 2 players to selection by a major league affiliate.

“I thought that playing at Azusa Pacific would be my best chance (to get drafted), because it was an opportunity to play for great baseball guys like Coach Svagdis and Coach Ruiz,” said Shive. “Also having (assistant coach) Derek Wohlers as my pitching coach, as well as the strength & conditioning coach, had a huge part in getting me back into shape. (Assistant coach) Mike Price working with us on the mental part of the game helped, too, because there’s only so much physical stuff you can do. You can have all the talent in the world, but if your mind is not right, you can’t tap into that talent.”

Bravo compiled a sparkling 21-1 record over his 2 seasons at Azusa Pacific after spending his 2006 freshman campaign at Mt. San Antonio CC. He earned wins in all 5 of his decisions in 6 postseason starts during Azusa Pacific’s back-to-back trips to the NAIA World Series. Bravo was the winning pitcher in both of the Cougars’ World Series victories, a pair of remarkably similar results.

As a 2007 sophomore, Bravo took the mound after Azusa Pacific’s Series-opening defeat for an elimination game against Lee (Tenn.) University, and the 5-foot-7 left-hander scattered 3 runs on 8 hits and struck out a season-high 10 batters to lead the Cougars to the 7-4 win. Three hundred sixty-two days later, after Azusa Pacific again dropped its World Series opener, the Cougars turned to Bravo once again, and he responded with a career-high 11 strikeouts, again scattering a pair of runs on 8 hits in a 9-2 win over Ohio Dominican that kept Azusa Pacific’s championship hopes alive.

“Going to the World Series twice shows that I made the right choice coming out of junior college,” said Bravo, who enjoyed the support of a potent offense that posted the best 2-year batting average in program history. “I had a lot of support at Azusa Pacific, knowing a few of the players and Coach Svagdis, and the Lord just sent me in the right direction to go to school there. I was fortunate to play in two World Series, and I loved everyone I was playing with. It was a great group of guys, and I have to give a lot of the credit for the 21 victories I got to an incredible offense.”

Should Bravo forgo his final season of collegiate baseball eligibility by signing a professional contract with the Cardinals, he will finish his 2-year Cougar career ranked seventh in career wins in program history. His 2-year career statistics include his 21-1 record in 28 starts, along with 3 saves in 10 additional appearances in relief. He struck out 144 batters and walked 58 in 170 2/3 innings, finishing with an ERA of 4.80 over the past 2 years. Bravo also picked off 7 opposing baserunners.

Shive, meanwhile, who came to Azusa Pacific in 2008 for his final season of college eligibility, got off to a late start while recovering from an elbow injury. The 6-foot-5 righthander got his first taste of game action when he started the Cougars’ 15th game of the season, a 5-2 nonconference win over La Verne. Shive struck out 8 batters in a 4-inning relief appearance in Azusa Pacific’s 13-5 win over Point Loma Nazarene March 29, catapulting him into a starring role for an injury-riddled Cougar pitching staff.

“It was kind of frustrating at the beginning of the year, because I thought I was going to be on track with where I needed to be to help the team and everything,” said Shive. “The elbow injury set me back, but there were some great people around me to help me come back, people like (assistant coach) Mike Price and (athletic trainer) Becky Roark.”

Shive emerged as Azusa Pacific’s postseason ace with a strong April, going 3-0 with a 1.57 ERA and 19 strikeouts in 23 innings in his 4 starts that month. The Cougars handed him the ball for their regional playoff opener, and Shive responded with his longest start of the season, striking out 6 batters in a 7.1-inning effort to lead Azusa Pacific to a 13-3 win over conference rival Concordia.

“Coach Price helped me get my mind right, and he told me maybe it was a blessing in disguise to hold me back a little longer, because I’d probably peak at the right time,” said Shive. “It turns out he was right, and everything worked out great.”

On the season, Shive registered a 6-2 record and a 3.95 ERA, finishing as Azusa Pacific’s ERA leader among starting pitchers. He struck out 46 batters in 57 innings of work, starting in 10 of his 12 appearances.

Bravo’s initial assignment will likely be Johnson City, Tenn., where the Cardinals have a Rookie League affiliate.

“I’m going to use a lot of the mental concepts that Coach Price taught us,” said Bravo, “and I’m going to try to translate some of the leadership qualities I had on the mound into pro ball. It’s a bigger stage and tougher competition, and I’m looking forward to it.”

Shive is likely destined for the Yankees’ Class A short-season affiliate in Staten Island, N.Y.