Jeff Francoeur is said to have the same body type as a young Dale Murphy. (courtesy Gwinnett Daily Post)

During this year's draft, the Braves further proved that pitching remains a priority by selecting 34 hurlers (16 left-handers). Paul Snyder, a special assistant to general manager John Schuerholz and a man who Baseball America granted the Excellence in Scouting Award (1982-2001), said he saw more large-bodied high school pitchers this year than he had ever seen and that is evident when looking at the size of the Braves selections this year.

Since Atlanta's minor league teams lack a catcher with a legitimate shot of becoming a full-time starter in the Majors, two of the first seven picks were catchers. By the end of Wednesday's selections, they had chosen six.

Brian McCann, the team's third selection and first catcher taken, and Jeff Francouer, the Braves' first selection, competed against each other in high school and were two of the seven prep players from the Metro Atlanta area who were taken by their hometown team.

Jonathan Schuerholz, the son of Atlanta's GM and the Braves eighth round pick, played his high school ball at Lovett Academy, which is located just north of Atlanta. After high school, he took his game to Auburn University where he has started since arriving three seasons ago.

Other standout college selections included third baseman Yaron Peters, who played at South Carolina and was the SEC Player of the Year, and first baseman James Jurries, who played at Tulane and was selected as Conference USA's top player at the end of the season.

"Right now there 30 scouting directors telling their general manager about how great their draft was," Clark said. "We are very happy with our selections and time will tell how well we did."

	BRAVES 2002 DRAFT PICKS
	23	JEFFREY B FRANCOEUR	CF	PARKVIEW HS
	34	DANIEL L MEYER	LHP	JAMES MADISON U
	64	BRIAN M MCCANN	C	DULUTH HS
	65	JAMES T GREENE	SS	SAINT THOMAS AQUINAS HS
	95	CHARLES A MORTON	RHP	JOEL BARLOW HS
	125	STEPHEN T RUSSELL	RHP	CIMARRON-MEMORIAL HS
	155	BRYAN K HARVEY	C	BANDYS SCHOOL
	185	JAMES L JURRIES	1B	TULANE U
	215	PATRICK K CLAYTON	RHP	WALTON HS
	245	JONATHAN L SCHUERHOLZ	SS	AUBURN U
	275	NICHOLAS L STARNES	RHP	GRAHAM HS
	305	YARON PETERS	3B	SOUTH CAROLINA U
	335	MICHAEL A GRASSO	2B	U ALBANY
	365	WES R TIMMONS	SS	BETHUNE-COOKMAN COL
	395	DANIEL L MEAD	LHP	MANATEE JC
	425	MICHAEL F REISS *	RHP	SEMINOLE CC
	455	JOHN P LOWEN	C	LASSITER HS
	485	MICHAEL S MUELLER	RHP	AUBURN U
	515	BRAD DAVID	LHP	LOUISIANA ST U
	545	JOSHUA R ADAMS	LHP	FRANKLIN COLLEGE
	575	FERNANDO N TADEFA	LHP	ST MARYS U
	605	CHARLES H JAMES	LHP	CHATTAHOOCHEE VALLEY CC
	635	JAMES A PARKER	RHP	SONOMA ST U
	665	WILLIAM W SHIELDS	RHP	BAY HS
	695	TIMOTHY J CUNNINGHAM	LHP	STANFORD U
	725	PAUL D BUSH	RHP	GEORGIA SOUTHWESTERN STAT
	755	STEVEN J REISS *	RHP	SEMINOLE CC
	785	CHRISTOPHER M MAHER	RHP	PENSACOLA JC
	815	TRAVIS J STANTON	RHP	LAKE CITY CC
	845	DEVIN ANDERSON	LHP	WEST ORANGE HS
	875	MARK N WAGNER	C	MAYFAIR HS
	905	COOPER A OSTEEN	SS	INDIAN RIVER CC
	935	BRANDON M NALL	RHP	GEORGE C WALLACE CC
	965	DARRELL W QUALLS	SS	MIDDLEBURG HS
	995	JACOB A ECKLEY	LHP	OMAHA BURKE HS
	1025	RYAN M PATTERSON	OF RF	TEXARKANA CC
	1055	KENNETH E BROCK	LHP	LANE CC
	1085	ABRAHAM B VARGAS	RHP	BAY CITY HS
	1115	MATTHEW J DALE	LHP	WALTON HS
	1145	JEFFREY M TIMMONS	C	MANATEE CC
	1175	BRETT E YOUNG	1B	GLOUCESTER COUNTY COL
	1205	KEVIN A KOTCH	C	MIDDLESEX HS
	1235	DAVID A HAYES	RHP	AMERICAN HERITAGE SCHOOL
	1265	RYAN PAUL	LHP	MOORPARK HS
	1294	KEN LIVESLEY	RHP	COSUMNES RIVER CC
	1322	CHRISTOPHER E TYNDALL	RHP	ARMSTRONG HS
	1349	DANIEL F COLLINS	LHP	INDIAN RIVER CC
	1376	BRANDON D JUDGE	RHP	SANTA MARGARITA HS
	1402	RICK D AGUILAR	LHP	CYPRESS COL
	1428	CHRISTOPHER J WIDING	LHP	EAST PAULDING HS
	1453	CHRISTOPHER D DUNBAR	LF	LA CONNER HIGH SCHOOL
	1477	MATTHEW R HANDLEY	LHP	GREATER ATLANTA CHRISTIAN

Mark Bowman covers the Braves for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.