Big Leaguers Remember Draft Experiences ‘Like Christmas Day’

SECAUCUS, N.J. (AP) – Jim Abbott vividly remembers sitting nervously at home in Flint, Michigan, the tension broken only by one life-changing phone call.
On the other side of the line were the Angels, announcing to the left-handed pitcher that they had selected him with the eighth overall pick in the 1988 baseball draft.
“It’s like Christmas Day, times 100,” a smiling Abbott recalled Thursday night. “You know Santa Claus is coming, but you’re not sure when he&