Four Jags Selected In MLB Draft
The University of South Alabama baseball program had four players selected in the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft over the weekend.
On the second day of the draft the Colorado Rockies chose Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year Jordan Patterson with the third pick of the fourth round, the 109th pick overall. Kyle Bartsch was chosen by the Kansas City Royals with the eighth pick of the seventh round, which was the 204th overall pick.
Dylan Stamey was chosen by the Colorado Rockies with the third pick of the 14th round, the 409th pick overall. Also Nolan Earley was selected in the 22nd round by the Chicago White Sox for the 663rd pick overall.
Patterson was named to the first-team all-conference team as a utility player this spring. He was sixth in the Sun Belt with a .352 batting average. He collected 82 hits, 25 doubles, 69 runs scored and 49 RBI. The junior from Mobile was walked 41 times and hit by a pitch 21 times. He also had a .485 on-base percentage to lead the conference and was tied for the conference lead in doubles while finishing second in runs.
Patterson also earned a 1.84 ERA on the mound with two saves and 17 strikeouts with only six walks in 14 2/3 innings pitched. Patterson is the highest Jaguar selection since Adam Lind was selected in the third round in 2004.
Bartsch, a Hurst, Texas native, had a 3-0 record with 12 saves and a 3.12 ERA in 22 appearances this past season, all in relief. He was voted to the Second-team All-SBC team as he struck out 35 batters in 26 innings of work. He only walked 11 and held opponents to only a .189 batting average.
Bartsch finished second in the conference in saves while tying the school record in the category that was originally set by former All-American Mike Nakamura in 1998. He is the first Jaguar in program history to earn 10 or more saves in back-to-back seasons. He leaves the program as the all-time leader with 22 saves in two seasons.
Stamey made 24 appearances in relief as he went 5-2 with a 2.17 ERA and four saves. He struck out 62 batters and walked only nine. He finished second on the team in strikeouts with only 37 1/3 innings of work. He held opponents to a .209 batting average in his junior season, his first with the Jaguars.
Earley, a senior last season from Anderson, Indiana, led the Jags with 59 RBI with a .323 batting average with 19 doubles and 50 runs scored. He finished second on the team with 76 base hits and had a .411 on-base percentage with 36 walks. He was fourth in the Sun Belt Conference in RBI and among the top 10 in doubles.
The Jags finished 43-20 overall and 20-10 in Sun Belt play on the season and advanced to the NCAA Regional for the first time since 2004.