"This has been my dream since I started playing baseball. I am ready to go out and play now. I would sign (a contract) for a cheeseburger and plane ticket. I just want to play," Teague said.
Cooper's situation is a little different. He transferred from Eastern Kentucky to Des Moines (Iowa) Area Community College and had a 3.48 earned run average and 8-1 record with four complete games in 13 starts. Opponents hit only .204 off him and he had 106 strikeouts in 72 1/3 innings.
He's in Falmouth, Mass., preparing to start play Friday in the prestigious Cape Cod League. If he doesn't sign with Arizona, he'll go to Bradley next year.
"It's completely different with me and Evan. I am really happy for him. He's a senior and this is such a great opportunity for him and his hard work has really paid off," Cooper said.
"I was asking for too much money for a lot of teams to take a chance on me in the higher rounds. But it is still beneficial for me to get drafted in the place I did. They will not make me an offer right away that will stress me out. They will watch me pitch and then at the end of the summer either meet my demands for what I want for a signing bonus or make me their best offer. If I do well this summer, I can still get what I want. If not, I can still go to Bradley and be eligible for the draft again next year."
Teague pitched in 35 games for Western - the second most in school history - and helped the Hilltoppers win a school-record 43 games and advance to the NCAA regional final before losing to Mississippi. He struck out 38 and walked 17. Opponents hit .245 off the left-handed Teague who throws his fastball in the 88-92 mile per hour range.
In four years he pitched in 97 games, the second highest number in school history. He had a 12-6 career record as he struck out 100 and had a 5.48 ERA in 108 1/3 innings. However, the last two years he had a 2.94 ERA in 67 innings as a reliever.
"I thought maybe I would have a chance to get drafted in a later round or sign as a free agent," Teague said. "I don't know what will happen now. I probably will get sent to some mini-camps or a short season (league). I am just waiting to find out.
Being a lefty was a plus
"I think being a lefty helped me a lot. Organizations are eager to get left-handed pitching. I am sure my numbers the last two years at Western helped, too. My changeup has really developed over last year and my slider is now a great strikeout pitch."
Teague, one of six players drafted off Western's team, doesn't know whether he'll be destined for a starting role or used mainly in relief as he was at Western this season.
"All I know is that where you are drafted isn't an indicator of what you might do," Teague said. "I know a guy from Western that went independent, signed as a free agent and now he's in Triple-A. You can work your way up no matter where you were drafted."
Cooper said an Arizona scout plans to watch him pitch and then have some others in the organization come to evaluate him in person. The Diamondbacks have until Aug. 15 to sign Cooper or he'll head to Bradley.
"I had scouts call before the draft and I told them I didn't care what round I was picked in as long as I eventually got the money I wanted," Cooper said. "There's still a great chance I can get the signing bonus I want that high picks get and teams can concentrate now on guys that are ready to sign.
"I am asking for a lot of money, probably more than 90 percent of the picks are asking. It just comes down to a team's feeling about your signability and how long you are willing to wait to get what you want."
Still, Cooper admitted it was special to be drafted in any round.
"I am just excited and it's more special to do this the same time Evan did," Cooper said. "We came up together. We played together. Every year we work out and throw during the summer and winter," Cooper said. "We've always had that common goal to get to the big leagues and it's nice to see it getting closer to reality."
