As the first round of the MLB Amateur Draft wound down Tuesday evening, Cal center fielder Brett Jackson and his family came to the realization that he was probably not going to get picked in the first round as anticipated.

"I did not get a phone call. My advisor hadn't called me," Jackson said. "There was like a minute left on the clock so I'd pretty much given up on it altogether."

Luckily for Jackson, the Chicago Cubs had other plans.

With the 31st pick in the Draft, the Cubs took the junior from Orinda, Calif., who is considered by many to be one of the best pure athletes available in the 2009 Draft.

"It seemed like it would be a great fit, and I love Chicago," Jackson said. "But we had no idea. So it was like the most pleasant surprise of my life."

Jackson played 152 games in three years for the Bears and owns a .303 batting average, 85 RBI and 12 home runs in that span. This past season, Jackson hit a career-best .321 with eight home runs and 11 stolen bases.

As a junior, Jackson earned first-team all Pac-10 honors, and he was named the eighth-best player in the Cape Cod League last summer.

Like Jackson, teammate Jeff Kobernus was also left in the dark until he heard his name called on the MLB.TV broadcast of the Draft.

"I got a text from a scout saying congratulations," the junior second baseman said. "I was watching (the Draft) on the computer, and my computer was about a minute behind. Then I saw they took me."

"They" was the Washington Nationals, who selected Kobernus with the first pick of the second round (50th overall).

Kobernus hit .324 in his three years at Cal, knocking in 89 while stealing 44 bases. He was an All-American his freshman year and earned first-team all Pac-10 honors in 2009.

Six picks after Kobernus, junior utility player Blake Smith-whose draft stock came into question after a lat injury kept him from pitching for the second half of the season-was snatched up by the Los Angeles Dodgers.

"I went down (to Los Angeles) on Monday for a workout, and it went pretty well," Smith said. "I didn't have any ideas coming into the draft which was why it was so nervewracking. … It's been fun, but I'm just happy it's over. I'm ready to get it going."

Smith said that although he was announced as a pitcher, the Dodgers will assign him to play right field when he reports to his to-be-announced affiliate team.

In three seasons with the Bears, Smith hit 28 home runs, drove in 111 runs and, when healthy, has shown off a cannon arm. This past season, Smith threw out two runners at the plate from right field.

As a member of the collegiate branch of Team USA last summer, Smith was an integral part of the team's 24-0, gold-medal season. He led the squad with a .327 batting average and earned two saves and a win as a reliever.

Cal's three picks in the first three rounds tied for the most by one school, and the Bears added two more yesterday in the later rounds of the Draft.

Junior reliever Michael Bugary was drafted 468th overall by the Boston Red Sox, and the Florida Marlins took senior infielder Michael Brady in the 24th round.

"It's pretty exciting to go through the year with those guys and see that their hard work paid off," Brady said. "It's a great time for everyone. It's a good day for the Cal baseball program."

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