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Phillies must decide whether big lefty A.J. Puk is worth drafting No. 1

Fifth in a series of profiles of potential Phillies draft picks.

HOOVER, Ala. - A.J. Puk absorbed the charged atmosphere at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium last week with each completed inning. He yelled and chewed the top of his Florida jersey when he hung a slider in the fifth inning of an SEC tournament game. He pumped his fist twice with a big strikeout to end the sixth. He pounded his chest after a seventh-inning groundout.

Puk, a 6-foot-7 pitcher with a prized left arm, shuffled each time past his Gators teammates. He disappeared into the dugout tunnel, which doubled as a sanctuary, until the spotlight shined again.