Seton-LaSalle graduate Derek Law has a tough decision to make by Aug. 15.

Should he go to college or should he turn pro? Should he become a professional ballplayer for the Texas Rangers, who selected him in the 28th round of the Major League Baseball draft in June? He must sign with Texas by the mid-August deadline or the franchise will lose its draft rights for signing him.

Law was regarded as one of the top pitchers in the WPIAL for the past three years. He earned All-Area recognition from the Post-Gazette as a senior, leading the Rebels to the WPIAL Class AA playoffs as a pitcher/infielder. His father, Joe Law, spent nine seasons as a pitcher in the Oakland Athletics' farm system through 1992.

Derek Law had a 3-2 pitching record with 1.70 ERA with 55 strikeouts in 39 innings. At the plate, he batted .428 with four home runs and 20 RBIs.

He has received a baseball scholarship to Miami Dade Community College in Florida where he is scheduled to leave for the fall semester by Aug. 17. Miami Dade, with a 37-10 record in the spring, is one of the top two-year college baseball programs in the nation.

A 6-foot-3, 175-pounder, Law has not signed with the Rangers because he has been weighing his options for the immediate future. Unlike players taken in the early rounds of the draft, 28th-round picks do not sign for a great deal of bonus money, usually not enough to offset the expense of a college scholarship.

Law recently said he was "50-50" on his decision between college and pro ball. If he passes on the Rangers' offer to sign, he will be eligible for the draft again next June as long as he attends Miami Dade Community College. If he would play next spring for a four-year college program, Law would not be eligible for the draft again until 2012.

"The Rangers [scouts] came out to see him pitch twice this summer and [Derek] is still waiting for that final offer," said Joe DelSardo, the manager for one of the teams Law played for this summer, the South Hills Merchants of the Western Pennsylvania Elite Baseball League.

Law also played American Legion baseball for Mount Washington (players 19 or younger after Jan. 1). He also played for the Mount Washington Super Colt team (18 and younger) that won the Mayor's Cup tournament last Friday at PNC Park by defeating Morningside, 4-1.

Law did not pitch in that game, but played third base. Law did not pitch a great deal in the summer. He was 4-0 for the Merchants, leading them to a playoff berth. The Merchants were swept in the best-of-three first round of the WPEBL playoffs by the Diamond Dogs, 11-5 and 5-4. Law did not pitch in either of those games.

"The good thing for Derek is he has options if the Rangers don't come up with the money that his family doesn't think is worth it, then he'll go to one of the top junior college programs in the country," DelSardo said.

The highlight of Law's summer season came June 21 during a complete-game 7-1 victory over the Red Sox, one of the games the Rangers scouts attended. Law struck out 14 batters against a team that finished tied for first place in the WPEBL standings. The Red Sox, one of the strongest hitting teams in the league, defeated the Merchants, 21-17, a day before Law's masterful performance.

Law's reluctance to sign with the Rangers is not unusual, especially for players seeking a college baseball career immediately out of high school. Only 10 of the players taken higher by the Rangers than Law have signed with Texas so far. This includes nine other high school pitchers who were drafted ahead of Law. The Rangers' top pick (14th overall) Matt Purke, a left-hander from Klein, Texas, has not yet signed after committing to play at Texas Christian University.

"Guys from around here don't go to junior colleges in the south because they aren't strong enough academically to go to a four-year school," DelSardo said. "They go to schools like Dade strictly from a baseball perspective. That's what Derek's dad did before he signed with the A's [at age 21]."