Loveless continues to play waiting game with Blue Jays

CEDAR RAPIDS - He didn't seem to be intentionally evavise, but Derrick Loveless wasn't exactly in the detail-giving mode either Saturday night.

The all-state Solon outfielder was asked after his team's 5-4 extra-inning loss to Cedar Rapids Kennedy what he has heard from the Toronto Blue Jays. The Jays took him in the 27th round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft in mid-June.

"That, I'm still working on," Loveless said. "I don't have too much information on that right now."

Loveless said the Blue Jays have told him they will offer him a contract after Solon's season concludes. MLB clubs have until the middle of August to sign their draft picks.

He went into Saturday night's game hitting .574 with nine home runs and 50 RBIs in 32 games. He also has 23 stolen bases.

The best way to describe Loveless' game is smooth. He's a lefty hitter who showed off a strong and accurate right arm on a play against Kennedy in which he threw a one-hop strike to third base from right-center field, nearly gunning down a baserunner trying to advance from first to third on a single.

Considering his multi-sport prowess during his career at Solon, Loveless' best days on the diamond are definitely still ahead of him, hence the interest from the Blue Jays. He is an Iowa Hawkeye signee whose father played football at Iowa.

He seems open to anything at this point, whether that's college or professional baseball.

"Not right now," he said with a smile, when asked if he had a feeling which route he will go.