By: Jonathan Szczepaniak | Royal Oak Review | Published July 31, 2024
ROYAL OAK — Whether it’s from the United Shore Professional Baseball League or various Michigan-based teams in the amateur college baseball Northwoods League, such as the Royal Oak Leprechauns, Major League Baseball has had a firm grasp on local talent in the Michigan area.
The USPBL has witnessed 52 of its own sign MLB contracts to chase their professional baseball dreams, and the Royal Oak Leprechauns have now chipped in four draft picks.
Following the completion of the 2024 MLB draft, the Royal Oak Leprechauns saw two former and two current players receive their dream phone calls.
Current Leprechauns right-handed pitchers Griffin Kilander (Wayne State University), a Livonia native, and Jake Jekielek (Northwood University), a Sterling Heights native, were selected in the 16th (477th overall) and 10th rounds (315th overall), respectively, after contributing for the green and gold pitching staff. Kilander was selected by the Boston Red Sox while Jekielek will join the Texas Rangers organization.
Outfielder Zach MacDonald (Miami University), a 2021 Leprechaun and Portage native, will stay close to home after being selected in the 15th round (446th overall) by the Detroit Tigers while left-handed pitcher Derek Clark (West Virginia University), a 2021 Leprechaun and Petersburg native, was selected in the ninth round (262nd overall) by the Los Angeles Angels.
It’s only the team’s first year taking part in one of the most prestigious amateur baseball leagues in the nation, but Leprechauns general manager Mark Sackett said it’s a signal for what’s to come in the club’s future.
“As we begin moving forward in this organization, our biggest deal was that here we have (draft selections who played for the Leprechauns) in 2021, and then we jump into the Northwoods League and we have two (players drafted) right off the bat,” Sackett said. “It just shows you that the level of play is so much higher in the Northwoods League, and this goes to prove it right here with these two guys getting drafted. We doubled the number of guys being drafted in one year in the Northwoods League. It’s a huge thing for us because we know that the Northwoods League has been a major jump for us. Because of the draft results, it really proves the fact that we’ve reached a whole new level.”
Jekielek, a 2020 Sterling Heights Stevenson High School graduate, was recently selected to the Northwoods League’s all-star team after posting a 0.73 ERA in 24.2 innings of work with 31 strikeouts and seven saves. Jekielek finished his career at Northwood University ranked third all-time in saves with 16, compiling a 4.42 ERA with 117 strikeouts in 106 innings of work.
He may not blow the fastball by you, but Northwood baseball head coach Bradley Baldwin said it’s Jekielek’s arm slot that separates him from other pitchers.
“I think he’s a pretty unique individual, specifically with his throwing,” Baldwin said. “He’s pretty much straight-up sidearm, and being 90-91 (mph) from there with a little bit of sink, and he’s got some pretty good off-speed, I think that’s probably pretty intriguing to people at the next level, especially when they get him into their developmental system and be hands-on. They might get more notches in velocity from him and sharpen up his off-speed a bit more.”
Kilander, a 2021 Livonia Stevenson High School graduate, dominated Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play during his Warriors’ tenure, posting a 3.61 ERA and a 14-6 record from 2022-2024.
Kilander’s best season came in 2023 when he tallied a 2.44 ERA and 7-3 record on the year, leading Wayne State to a GLIAC Championship.
“From day one, our coaching staff believed Griffin had the potential to advance to the professional level,” Wayne State head coach Ryan Kelley said. “Obviously, to continue to advance, a lot of factors are involved. Griffin continued to embrace the development process and ultimately heard his name called as a MLB draft selection.”
While he statistically took a step back in 2024, Kilander became a strikeout machine for the Warriors, earning 81 strikeouts in 81 innings of work, averaging a strikeout per inning for the first time in his college career.
“A big point of emphasis for Griffin this year was commanding the breaking ball and throwing it more often for a strike early in counts,” Wayne State pitching coach Eric Bezel said. “The year before, Griffin would have to rely on his fastball early in counts, resulting in more balls being put in play. Showing that he could throw a breaking ball for a strike more consistently made the fastball more effective later in counts, resulting in more swing and miss. In addition to this emphasis on breaking ball execution, Griffin also saw an increase in average (velocity) on all his pitches due to him putting on about 15 pounds of good weight from his sophomore year to junior year.”
Having MLB scouts in attendance became second nature for the Leprechauns this season, and with the talent the team possesses, there’s no reason for anything to change when the 2025 MLB draft approaches.
Sackett said the beauty of having scouts at Memorial Park is that when scouts come to see one player, they end up being exposed to them all.
“I’ve talked to the Phillies’ scout, the Rockies’ scout, and the Rangers’ scout, and they’ve all been to these games and they’re showing up like, ‘Wow, look at that guy. I came to watch this guy and I see this guy,’” Sackett said. “It’s been nice. Chris Collias (a Rangers scout) has been a friend of mine for a long time, and he’s the guy that signed Jekielek. Chris came to the game and he’s seeing other players, and Derrick Ross from the Phillies, and he was here to see Jekielek throw as well, and he saw another kid swing the bat and he goes, ‘Man, you got some players here.’”