Shuck Gives Father Quite a Ride; Headed to AFL

Courtesy the Caller.com

The 2008 sixth-round pick out of Ohio State is proud to carry the "gritty baseball player" label

By Ryan Metz of MiLB.com

Jack Shuck estimates he has logged over 200,000 miles on the two cars he's driven to watch his son play baseball. First there was the Pontiac Sunfire he totaled on a trip to Tennessee to see a game, and now he has a Pontiac G6 that has seen the odometer tack some miles.

Shuck hustling through the Minor Leagues

Gritty outfielder climbing up the Astros' farm system


By Steve Gartner/MLB.com
08/05/10

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas -- Hooks left fielder J.B. Shuck wasn't feeling well before a Double-A game in May against Arkansas.

"He was sick as a dog," hitting coach Mark Bailey said.

Shuck to Astros in Sixth

Jack "J.B." Shuck was selected in the sixth round by the Houston Astros. He was the 182nd overall pick.

"It was a thrill to see my name pop up on the computer," Shuck said in an interview with The Buckeye Nine. "I have worked so hard to get to this point and now it has finally happened. I really can't explain how exciting it is to get an opportunity to go play at the next level. Thanks to
everyone for all of their support over the years."

As a senior, Shuck batted .356 (62-for-174) in 48 games/starts. He had five doubles, three triples and stole 22 bases. He made 11 starts on the mound and was 5-2 with a 4.29 ERA. Opponents batted .216 against him, the lowest against a Buckeye pitcher in 2008. He led the team with 76 strikeouts.

I am ecstatic about this pick as a huge fan of the Astros. Congrats J.B.!

Let fellow readers of The Buckeye Nine know what you think of this selection and feel free to leave J.B. a note here.

Here is the Ohio State news release that was posted on its Web site Friday afternoon.

I wanted to share a note about Shuck from the Astros' MLB.com site: "Shuck has the chance to be an above-average defender, and overachiever who the club thinks could have a long career in the big leagues."