Outfielder drafted by world champion Diamondbacks
by Paul Sweeney

Right fielder Dan Callahan of the Tufts University baseball team was selected in the 21st round of the Major League Baseball draft by the 2001 World Series Champion Arizona Diamondbacks and will be assigned to a minor league team within the organization.

Dan Callahan

Callahan is the second Jumbo who played under Head Coach John Casey to be drafted into major league ball. Pitcher Jeff Taglienti was taken by the Boston Red Sox in the seventh round in 1997. He was traded to the Colorado Rockies and then to the Cincinnati Reds, for which he currently plays at the AA level in Chattanooga, Tenn.

It's been a great run for Callahan. After recently completing a record-setting career at Tufts, he played in the New England College All-Star Game at Fenway Park on May 30. He went 1 for 3 with a run and an RBI. The 6'4", 190-pound lefty showed all the tools as a four-year starter at Tufts, finishing with a .390 batting average in 142 career games.

Named to the All-New England Second Team, Callahan led the Jumbos with a .404 batting average this spring. He hit nine doubles, seven triples and five home runs, drove in 36 runs and set the team's career records for hits (219), runs (153), runs batted in (130), doubles (45) and triples (14). His seven triples this spring are a new single-season mark.

Callahan graduated from Tufts on May 19, though he missed the ceremony while playing right field for the Jumbos at the NCAA Regional tourney. Tufts won a school-record 27 games and finished third at the regional tournament.

His academic record at Tufts was equally impressive. He was an international relations major with a grade point average better than 3.5, academic achievement that earned him a spot on the 2002 Verizon Academic College Division All-District team for two straight seasons.

The New England Small College Athletic Conference Player of the Year in 2001, he hit .420 with 41 runs batted in and 12 stolen bases. He cracked a single-season record 16 doubles while hitting .327 as a sophomore in 2000. Earning a starting role as a freshman, Callahan hit .413 as a rookie.

Callahan played in the New England College Baseball League for local teams from Lowell and Easton, Mass., the last two summers.