In four months, pitcher Chris Beck and outfielder Victor Roache are projected to become millionaire Major League Baseball players.

But both Georgia Southern juniors insist their focus is on the Eagles’ season, which begins today at J.I. Clements Stadium.

Baseball America projects Beck to be the seventh player selected in MLB’s First-Year Player Draft on June 4-6. The publication predicts Roache will be the ninth player drafted.

Both players said how they play for GSU will influence their draft positions, but they said they are handling the preseason attention and the pressure that comes with it.

“It’s always been team first,” said Beck, a 6-foot-3, 235-pound right-hander whose fastball has been clocked at 97 mph. “The draft is a bonus for whatever comes out of this year. We’re very prepared as a team and made a lot strides since the fall. I’m looking forward to this season more because of the group of guys that we have, and the core that we brought back.

“The major league draft is just the icing on the cake. It’s great having a guy like Victor on your team, and especially the families that we come from; very hard-working, blue-collar families.”

Beck, who played at Jefferson High School in Jefferson, said he feels obligated to perform his best because of his family’s support. He led GSU in wins (nine), starts (19), innings (103) and strikeouts (109) last season, and has been named a preseason All-American by numerous baseball publications.

“My dad always tells me, even after 6 a.m. runs in the fall, I’ll say, ‘Man, I’m worn out.’ And he’ll say, ‘Don’t get lazy on me.’ And I just want to yell at him because we just got done throwing up from running so much on the track,” Beck said. “But at the same time, I know he’s just keeping me centered. I definitely have to give a lot of credit to my family because there’s a lot of support there from my mom, my dad and my grandmother. They’re at every home game.

“Just to see them and the support that they have, and all of the hard work that they’ve put in to get me here, I just feel obligated to them to put in the work. And especially this team, because we all went through it. It’s not just me and Victor. We were all up at 6 a.m. running as a team. There’s no Chris Beck and the pitching staff. It’s the pitching staff. That’s really what it comes down to. Individual awards and stuff will come as the team succeeds. And that’s really what I want after getting a taste of what we did last year.”

GSU finished 36-26 last season, winning the Southern Conference Tournament championship for the second time in three years. The Eagles lost, 2-1, to eventual national champion South Carolina in the Columbia Regional.

Roache, a 6-foot-1, 235-pound junior from Ypsilanti, Mich., led the NCAA with 30 home runs last season.

“Playing South Carolina, playing them close, being in the game and having a chance to win, we know we can play with them,” Roache said. “Being there, tasting that, really motivates us to get back there and win this time. Having that little chip on our shoulder to get back there and win a regional, win a Super Regional and actually make it to Omaha.”

Roache said his family keeps him focused.

“My mom and dad, my sister, they definitely keep me grounded,” Roache said. “I’ve always been a team-oriented guy. The team comes first.

“Having the (major league) scouts out here to watch our practices has been crazy, but it’s definitely been a great experience.”

Beck and Roache spent the summer playing in the Cape Cod (Mass.) League, a showcase for the top college baseball players in the country. They were invited to the league’s all-star game at Fenway Park in Boston.

“We made the drive together from Atlanta, 21 hours from Atlanta, and split driving, so it was good,” Beck said of traveling with Roache. “It was such good competition up there. You had to raise your level of competition. Once we got up there, we saw that we might be from what you call a mid-major school but the fact is we’re just as good, if not better, than most of the guys up there.”

Beck and Roache played in the Cape Cod League for “seven or eight weeks, just every day playing,” Beck said. “We got a real good taste of playing every day.”

Roache hit a home run over the Green Monster, the left-field wall at Fenway Park.

“It was pretty cool,” Roache said. “We got to go on the field and take batting practice for the (Cape Cod League’s) All-Star Home Run Derby. All the guys there wanted to just hit that one out, over the Green Monster. Guys were trying. It looks close, but you’ve got to put a pretty good swing on it to get over it. I caught one and got it to go over, and it was a great feeling.”

GSU head coach Rodney Hennon said he is not concerned about the attention Beck and Roache are receiving from people, including major league scouts.

“Those guys have gotten a lot of attention,” Hennon said. “The best thing about that is both of those guys are team guys. They want to win. They put the team first. Both of those guys were voted as two of our four team captains because of that. They’ve very well-respected.

“The focus here will always be about the team. In a situation like this, it makes my job easier as a coach when you have two guys that are unselfish and set the right example the way those two guys do.”

Noell Barnidge can be reached at (912) 489-9408.