July 20, 2002
Notre Dame outfielder Brian Stavisky (Port Allegany, Pa.) – who just completed a stellar junior season with the Irish – has elected to sign with the Oakland Athletics, as the A’s sixth-round pick in the 2002 Major League draft (thus foregoing his final season of college eligibility).
Stavisky – one of the most versatile hitters in Notre Dame history – formally signed his contract on Saturday afternoon at A’s headquarters, after making his first visit to San Francisco earlier in the day. He then was invited to participate in batting practice with the A’s prior to their game with the Texas Rangers, with Stavisky’s first professional BP session including a pair of home runs and several other well-hit linedrives.
He is slated to begin his pro career in shortseason-A ball with the Vancouver Canadians of the Northwest League – where former Irish third baseman/catcher Andrew Bushey recently started his pro career as a member of the Tri-City Dust Devils (a Colorado Rockies affiliate).
A two-time Academic All-American with a 3.50 cumulative GPA as a business management major, Stavisky also has announced his plans to return to Notre Dame in the upcoming fall semesters in order to complete his degree requirements. During the eight-year tenure of head coach Paul Mainieri, all 47 Irish baseball players who have completed their eligibility have graduated from Notre Dame while the seven who previously have signed professionally after their junior season likewise have completed their degree requirements (or are nearing completion).
“This is the time I really wanted to get into pro ball. I’m ready to move on to new challenges in baseball at higher levels, and I’m ready to start working my way up the ladder now,” said Stavisky, whose cousin Dan Stavisky pitched for the Irish from 1995-98.
“I’ll be able to still finish school soon, which is important to me. I’m looking forward to working hard and trying my best, hopefully moving up through all the levels to the Major Leagues. It will take lots of focus, desire, and effort, but if I keep getting better, I think I can reach that goal.
“I’d like to thank the ND coaches for their help in making me a better player the past three years, and for giving me the opportunity to play at ND. I’d like to thank my teammates for their friendship and all the good times, on and off the field. And I’d like to thank the administration and support staff for all their backing us through the past three seasons. My experiences, baseball and off the field, at Notre Dame have made me into a better student, a better athlete, and a better person and have prepared me for this next stage in my life.”
Mainieri, speaking for the Notre Dame baseball program, praised Stavisky for his stellar three-year career and wished him the best in the challenge that awaits him. “Brian has been a great contributor to our program and one of the top student-athletes in the entire Notre Dame athletic department, which is no small feat,” said Mainieri. “We obvisouly are very sad to see him go but he now is pursuing his dream of playing pro baseball and of course will come back in the near future to complete his degree. Brian will always be a special member of the Notre Dame baseball family and we certainly wish him the best in the coming years.”
Five members of Notre Dame’s 2002 team now have joined the professional ranks, with four seniors (Steve Stanley, Bushey, Paul O’Toole and Matt Bok) signing in recent weeks. It equals the second-most players from one Irish team ever to enter pro ball in the same year (seven players from the 1996 team joined the pro ranks after that season).
Here are some career biographical notes on Stavisky:
The Montreal Expos selected Stavisky in the 12th round of the 1999 MLB draft while the Chicago Cubs made him a 33rd-round selection in 2001, as a draft-eligible sophomore (in both instances, he delayed his pro career in favor of playing for the Irish).
Stavisky joins Mike Amrhein (’94-’97) and Brant Ust (’97-’99) as the only Irish players ever to post a career batting average above .350 while also hitting 30-plus home runs. The 6-3, 230-pound lefthanded hitter is one of just four Irish players ever to hit 30-plus home runs and leg out 10-plus triples, joining Ryan Topham (’93-95), Alec Porzel (’98-’01) and Paul O’Toole (’99-’02) in that distinction. He ranks third on the Irish career triples list (14), seventh in home runs (33) and slugging percentage (.624), ninth in RBI (168; also 0.98 per game), and 11th in batting average (.355, 231-for-651) and doubles (48). Stavisky’s other career stats include 143 runs scored, 72 walks, 84 strikeouts and 16 stolen bases in 172 games played (171 starts).
Stavisky made a pair of comebacks from injury in the 2002 season – missing nine earlyseason games with a shoulder strain and nine more due to broken bones in his face, after being hit with a pitch on March 28. His final .394 season batting average ranks 17th in the Notre Dame record book and ranked third among all BIG EAST Conference players in 2002. Stavisky tied for the BIG EAST lead in triples (5) and paced the Irish in slugging pct. (.658, 4th BIG EAST) while his totals of 57 RBI (6th BIG EAST) and nine home runs both were just two shy of the team lead.
He also ranked second in the team in on-base percentage (.451), third in hits (76-for-193, 7th BIG EAST), doubles (14) and sacrifice flies (6), and fifth in runs scored (47) and walks (23, two more than his 21 Ks). He averaged a team-best 1.14 RBI per game played (50, all starts) and checked in as one of ND’s top situational hitters, ranking second on the squad in batting vs. RHPs (.422), with runners on base (.441) and with 2 outs (.380) – plus pct. of runners advanced(.618) – while ranking third-best in leadoff on-base pct. (.541), batting with runners in scoring position (.442) and runners advanced (26). Defensively, he made just one error in 81 chances while playing primarily left field (after patrolling right field in 2000 and ’01). In 2002 BIG EAST Conference games, Stavisky ranked fourth among the league’s players in conference batting average (.394), fifth in slugging (.648) and seventh in on-base (.465).
As a sophomore, he hit .386 (currently 23rd in the ND record book) while leading the 2001 team in RBI (66), home runs (10) and walks (31). Stavisky is one of just six Irish players ever to hit above .380 in multiple seasons, joining fellow greats Dan Peltier, Eric Danapilis, Scott Sollmann, Amrhein and Stanley in that distinction.
Stavisky earned first team Freshman All-America honors in 2000, after setting still-standing ND freshman records for home runs (14, good for 9th overall in the ND record book) and at-bats (248). The only Irish freshman ever to hit double-digit home runs and five-plus triples, his 45 RBI in 1999 remain the second-most ever by an ND freshman while his five triples rank third.
A four-time Dean’s List student, Stavisky repeated as a third team Academic All-American in 2002 – joining Peltier as the only Irish baseball players ever to earn multiple Academic All-America honors prior to their senior season.
Stavisky was named second team all-BIG EAST Conference in each of his three seasons and was named to NCAA All-Regional teams in 2001 and ’02 (he totaled seven home runs in 14 NCAA games during the ’01 and ’02 postseasons).
Ranked in Baseball America’s season preview issues as one of the nation’s “best pure hitters” and “best power hitters,” Stavisky also was a two-time all-star with the Hyannis Mets in the prestigious Cape Cod summer wooden-bat league (his .324 batting average in the summer of 2000 trailed only Stanley in the entire CCL).
Stavisky’s career included several noteworthy hot streaks: in the opening weekend of the 2001 season at the Mississippi State Classic, he hit 9-for-13 and reached base on 10 consecutive plate appearances: in the 2001 NCAA South Bend Regional, he hit 10-for-21 with four home runs and 25 total bases; and in the final week of the 2002 regular season, he reached base on 11 consecutive plate appearances – including a 5-for-5 game in the opening showdown with Boston College.
Moved up from the cleanup spot to the No. 3 hole due to the loss of injured freshman shortstop Matt Macri, Stavisky responded with many clutch hits during the 2002 season. Notre Dame closed with a 33-7 record after his return from the second injury (decked out in his signature football-style facemask), with Stavisky’s postseason heroics including: the 10th-inning double into the leftfield corner that helped bring Steve Sollmann around from first base for the 3-2 win; a 2-run, 1st-inning shot launched over the high rightfield fence in the NCAA Super Regional opener at Florida State (ND went on to win 10-4 and won the decisive third game, 3-1); and the game-ending, 2-run shot that beat Rice in a College World Series elimination game, 5-3 (he also made several stellar defensive plays in the FSU series).