FORT MYERS, Fla. – Madison Younginer did not hide his divided loyalties.

The right-hander, who was drafted in the seventh round and signed out of Mauldin High School in South Carolina for $975,000 by the Red Sox last summer, had made the short drive down Edison Ave. from the minor league facility to take in his organization’s big league exhibition game on Monday. But at times, he had no problems admitting, he was hoping to see a member of the Orioles succeed at the Sox’ expense.

That was because the Orioles squad in Fort Myers featured Brandon Snyder. The first baseman, a 2005 first-round pick, is one of the top Orioles prospects. In 2009, he demolished Double-A pitching (.343/.421/.597/1.018) before struggling in Triple-A (.248/.316/.355/.671). This spring, the 23-year-old is trying to position himself for a summons to the majors, if not to open the season, then sometime in 2010.

Though it came against Sox pitchers, Younginer was thrilled to see Snyder – his cousin – go 2-for-4 with a double (off of Tim Wakefield) and homer (off of reliever Ramon Ramirez) in the spring training game.

“I’m rooting for the Red Sox the whole time, except when he’s hitting,” said Younginer. “It’s awesome to see my cousin. … It’s just a reality that the person who sits across from me at the dinner table at Thanksgiving sometimes is out there on first base.”

Of course, the Sox might not have minded seeing Snyder advance his own spring chances, given that the Orioles prospect played a role in the decision-making process that led the talented Younginer to sign with Boston.

Younginer was torn between signing with the Sox and accepting a scholarship to pitch and play outfield for Clemson. As he went back and forth on the decision, the pitcher sought the counsel of both his cousin, Brandon Snyder, and his uncle, Brian Snyder, the latter of whom had a brief big league career with the A’s and Mariners.

Brandon Snyder had gone through a similar decision making process just a few years earlier while weighing a scholarship to LSU and the opportunity to turn pro. Ultimately, Snyder elected to sign for a $1.7 million bonus. He was able to draw on those experiences as well as his time in the minors to held advise Younginer last summer.

“It was nice to be able to help him and help his family,” said Brandon Snyder. “With my situation, it was all financial. I wanted to go to school but financially, the Orioles made it work for me. With him, he was in kind of the same boat.”

“All throughout the draft process, if we ever had a question, we could just call Brandon and Brian and ask them,” said Younginer. “Having a resource like that is vital to the whole process and made it a lot easier.”

The questions were largely basic, including elements such as what the professional experience would be like, what to anticipate from the world of minor league bus trips, what sorts of things to look forward to on the field.

The guidance proved of great help in helping Younginer make his decision. The 6-foot-4 right-hander is content with the outcome.

“I’m having a good time, working toward my goal,” said Younginer. “Clemson is an awesome school. In order to pull me away from that, it was going to take me a lot. Boston wanted me enough to meet what I wanted. That was great. I’m glad they did.”

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So, too, are the Sox. Younginer, after all, features the kind of arm that turns heads.

The right-hander says that his fastball has regularly been clocked at 97 mph (“That’s happened a good number of times,” he said). He complements that with what Sox farm director Mike Hazen describes as a hammer curve. He is also working to incorporate a changeup.

“It’s coming along really quickly in my opinion,” said Younginer. “I’m really confident that it’s becoming a third primary pitch.”

The stuff is clearly compelling, though Younginer’s experience remains extremely limited. He signed too late last summer to pitch for a minor league affiliate. He made his debut in the Fall Instructional League, where he had the chance to work with Sox coaches for the first time.

During that short period of time, he showed considerable pitching aptitude. He did nothing but impress while underscoring his immense potential.

“Everything he’s done in a short period of time, he’s been picking up, and picking up quickly,” said Hazen. “He spent time down in the bullpen with [pitching coordinator Ralph Treuel], and his delivery improved tremendously just in instructional league. His ability to throw strikes and be in the zone speaks to that. He definitely shows signs of a changeup.”

Even so, Younginer remains relatively raw and inexperienced. He threw just a handful of innings in the Instructional League, and minor league spring training games don’t start until Wednesday.

That being the case, the Sox have not yet seen enough of the young pitcher to know whether he will open the year in Single-A Greenville of the South Atlantic League (an assignment that essentially would have Younginer pitching in his hometown) or whether he will remain in Fort Myers and being the year in Extended Spring Training. The Sox need to see Younginer pitch in games this spring before they can make that determination.

That evaluation will start soon. But for Younginer, the process of thinking about a big league future became a bit more real on Monday.

He has never pitched against Snyder, but as he watched his cousin play for an Orioles team that resides in the same division as the Sox, Younginer was able to imagine a future in which he will be competing against his relative.

“That would be awesome. I’ve never faced him. I’ve thrown with him a couple times, but that’s it,” said Younginer. “It gives you a sense of reality – that could be me in a few years.”