Recent Kapolei High graduate Kalani Brackenridge has a big decision to make now.

Signed to play football for the University of Hawai'i as a cornerback, the former Hurricanes shortstop was among four players with ties to Hawai'i picked up in the final 20 rounds of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft yesterday.

"I have to talk it over with my parents and we'll go from there," Brackenridge said. "It depends on how everything works out."

Brackenridge was taken in the 44th round, the 1,339th overall selection, by the Tampa Bay Rays. He said he was sleeping, but his father saw his name pop up on the draft tracker on www.MLB.com.

"It's a crazy feeling," Brackenridge said. "I'm very blessed to get drafted."

Southern Utah's Nick Freitas (Kamehameha '05) and Point Loma Nazarene's Kaohi Downing (Punahou '05) were the only college players done with playing eligibility drafted. Freitas was chosen in the 33rd round by the Minnesota Twins, while Downing, an NAIA Gold Glove award winner his junior year as an outfielder, was taken in the 50th round by the San Francisco Giants as a pitcher.

Another UH recruit, right-handed pitcher Nick Struck of Mount Hood JC in Oregon, was picked in the 39th round by the Chicago Cubs. Kirk Wetmore of Bellevue (Wash.) JC, an 11th-round selection by the Cleveland Indians, is the other.

Not since Joey Meyer in 1981 has a UH football recruit been taken in the MLB draft out of high school. The offensive lineman was recruited to play for the then Dick Tomey-coached Rainbows. Meyer was an eighth-round selection by the then-California Angels out of Punahou, but did not sign. At UH, Tomey agreed to let Meyer play baseball for Les Murakami. As it turned out, Meyer ended up just playing baseball at UH and he was eventually drafted and signed by the Milwaukee Brewers in 1983.

Brackenridge, listed at 5 feet 11 and 175 pounds, said he has a similar agreement with UH football coach Greg McMackin in that he will be allowed to go out for baseball.

This isn't the only tie Brackenridge has to UH's past. His father, Lyle Brackenridge, was on the 1980 College World Series all-tournament team with former UH catcher Collin Tanabe. Tanabe's son, Carlton, was drafted in the 24th round by Seattle on Wednesday. The elder Brackenridge played for the University of California, which did not face UH in the CWS. Collin Tanabe (Brewers) and Lyle Brackenridge (Twins) also were drafted out of college. Kalani's half-brother, Tyron, plays cornerback for the Jacksonville Jaguars.

"Very athletic," Tampa Bay scout Casey Onaga said of the attributes he liked about Kalani Brackenridge. "He has potential with the bat."

Kalani Brackenridge said he missed Kapolei's regular season because of a hamstring injury sustained in preseason. Onaga said he made his assessments on Brackenridge based on games before the injury and through private workouts. Brackenridge said he is playing American Legion baseball with the Campbell team this summer. Onaga said he will follow Brackenridge's progress through the Aug. 17 signing deadline before making a final offer. The signing deadline was moved back two days because the original date falls on a Saturday.

Freitas, an outfielder, completed his eligibility at Southern Utah with strong offensive numbers. He batted .347, while leading the team with 14 homers, 60 RBI and 14 steals. He was an all-Summit League first-team selection.

"There were about 10 teams interested in me, but there were about five that were really, really interested," Freitas said. "I expected to go a lot higher than that, but as long as I got drafted, I'm happy."

Downing had a strong season with the bat, hitting .325 with 12 homers, 45 RBI and a team-leading 29 steals. But the Giants listed him as a pitcher, despite pitching only two innings, allowing four runs and five hits. But he struck out four while walking none.

"It's the only way I could get signed," said Downing, who graduated with a degree in exercise science. "But they'll still take a look at me in the outfield. Either way, I have no complaints."

Struck, a 6-0, 180-pound right-hander, was 9-0 with a 1.17 ERA, striking out 58, while walking 11 in 54 innings at Mount Hood as a freshman. But he has been cleared to transfer to UH and is eligible for three seasons.