After three years of awards and milestones, Pitt second baseman Jim Negrych’s work in front… After three years of awards and milestones, Pitt second baseman Jim Negrych’s work in front of the scouts at Trees Field has finally paid off.

The junior was selected yesterday in the fourth round — 170th pick overall — of the Major League Baseball Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates. Now, with one year of college eligibility left, Negrych will decide between entering the minor leagues or returning for his senior season.

“Obviously, my conversations with him are ‘if you get what you want, you’ve got to go’,” Pitt coach Joe Jordano said. “This is the negotiating year, so to speak.

“As a junior, you have a lot more bargaining power than you do as a senior and it’s a great opportunity.”

Heading into the draft, Negrych’s expectations were that he could be selected anywhere from the third round to the sixth. Recent scouting reports, however, knocked Negrych on his defense and lack of athleticism.

As his coach for three seasons, Jordano disputed those reports and knew that clubs still believed in what Negrych has to offer.

“I completely disagree with that,” he said. “The scouts that followed him on a consistent basis know that he has decent athleticism and defensively was one of our best infielders this year.

“I take exception to what was written about him in Baseball America.”

Jordano said that nearly five to eight scouts showed up at each Pitt game to take notes on Negrych. No one team in particular jumped to the forefront, though, and Negrych was just looking at who had the higher picks.

Negrych was the Pirates’ sixth pick in the draft and its second second baseman selected. The Pirates chose Oklahoma State second baseman Shelby Ford in the third round.

It’s no secret what Negrych has meant to Jordano and the Pitt baseball program in his three years as a Panther.

Negrych ended the 2006 season with a .396 average, 11 home runs and 60 RBIs to lead the Panthers in each category.

“He’s been tremendous, a difference maker. He’s brought such tremendous competitiveness and intensity to the field,” Jordano said. “You don’t replace a Jim Negrych. You take his numbers and try to balance them out to make up for his offense.”

One thing’s certain: Jordano will be on the recruiting trail, looking for the next Negrych to help push Pitt over the top. That, however, won’t be easy and Jordano knows how special a player Negrych became at Pitt.

“You don’t get many players like that on a yearly basis,” Jordano said. “They come around only once in a while.”