Bishop Gorman star patiently awaits draft

Richard Brian / Special to the Sun

Bishop Gorman’s Jeff Malm bats during the 4A state championship baseball game against Cimarron-Memorial on May 23. The Gaels were victorious 3-1 for the fourth straight state title. Malm struckout four of the five batters he faced in pitching the final 1 and 2/3 innings for the save.

By Steve Silver (contact)

Thursday, May 28, 2009 | 9:55 p.m.

Richard Brian

Pitcher Jeff Malm, a USC recruit, was selected by the Tampa Bay Rays in the fifth round of the 2009 MLB Entry Draft on June 10.

Richard Brian

Bishop Gorman pitcher Jeff Malm pitches during an intramural practice at Paul Meyer Park on Feb 18. The Gaels opened the season as the No. 1 team in the nation and went on to capture their fourth consecutive state championship.

Jeff Malm really knows how to celebrate a state championship.

Less than one week after Malm helped lead Bishop Gorman to its fourth consecutive 4A state baseball title, the senior pitcher and first baseman joined the rest of his senior classmates for a trip to Disneyland.

"Yeah, not a bad way to celebrate," Malm joked via cell phone at a rest stop in Barstow, Calif., Thursday night. "I can't think of a better way to go out than to win state. Luckily our senior class never had to deal with that feeling of losing a championship."

Not only did the Gaels cap a 40-4 season with a 3-1 victory over Cimarron-Memorial in the state title contest on Saturday, but Malm's 1-for-2 outing at the plate also tied a national record for hits.

Malm's single hit in the championship tied him for first place on the all-time national high school career hit list with 277, according to the National Federation of High School Sports. He is tied with Darren Deadmond of Odin, Ill., who played from 1985-88.

"I wasn't exactly sure of the number going into the playoffs, but I knew I was in the vicinity of it," Malm said. "I knew I needed one hit going into the final game. It would have been nice to break the record, but the state title is worth more than that."

As a team, the Gaels moved into second all-time in single season runs (561), doubles (127), RBI (516) and batting average (.463).

Individually, Malm finished his high school career second all-time in doubles (74) and fourth in career RBI (255). Fellow senior Joey Rickard set a national record with 87 runs in a single season.

"Winning state was always our main goal, but I think without myself and my teammates setting these big records, than we probably don't get the fourth state championship," Malm said. "These types of records say a lot about our team and our coaches."

Once Malm finishes taking a few victory spins on Space Mountain this weekend, the 6-foot-3, 225-pound USC recruit will head home to prepare for the baseball's First-Year Player Entry Draft on June 9.

Several Internet scouting services predict that Malm, who is a two-time member of the under-18 U.S. national squad, could be selected within the first three rounds.

"I try to ignore that stuff, because nobody really knows where anyone is going besides (Stephen) Strasburg," Malm said. "He's going No. 1 then from there we'll see how it all goes. Unless I hear it from the team scouts directly I don't pay much attention to the rankings and mock drafts."

Malm plans to watch the draft at home and he said he has no idea when he might get selected.

His draft order, though, will ultimately play a major role in determining whether to continue with his USC plans or to sign professionally.

"There is not a certain dollar amount that is out there, but if I go in the first couple of rounds, my family and I would consider signing," Malm said. "The scholarship to USC is worth a lot, so it would have to be that type of high offer to begin thinking about going the pro route."