COLORADO ROCKIES SELECT 30 PLAYERS
The Colorado Rockies concluded the final day of Major League Baseball’s 2017 First-Year Player Draft on Wednesday, selecting 30 players in rounds 11 through 30. Of the 30 picks today, the Rockies selected 15 pitchers and 15 position players. After selecting high school infielder Ryan Vilade with their first pick of the draft (48th overall), the Rockies did not select a high school player until the 35th round. Colorado selected 10 players originally from Colorado, including two players from high schools in the state: right-handed pitcher James Notary (Broomfield) and right-hander Drake Davis (Ralston Valley). Overall, the Rockies selected 33 players from the college ranks, six high school players and one player from an independent league club. The Rockies selected 20 pitchers (15 right-handers, five left-handers), six outfielders, four third basemen, three catchers, three second baseman, two first baseman and two shortstops. Below is a pick-by-pick breakdown of the Rockies’ Wednesday selections:
Rockies selected 15 pitchers and 15 position players in rounds 11 through 30
Left-handed pitcher Hunter Williams was selected in the 11th round with the 326th overall pick … a native of Mosley, Va., Williams played two seasons at the University of North Carolina from 2015-2016, going a combined 7-3 with a 2.42 ERA (78.0 IP, 21 ER) with 49 walks and 76 strikeouts … has most recently played with the Washington Wild Things of the independent Frontier League … the 6-foot-3, 225-pound lefty attended Cosby High School, where he was a first baseman … was previously selected by the San Francisco Giants in the 32nd round of the 2014 MLB First-Year Player Draft, but did not sign.
Shortstop Matt McLaughlin, 21, was selected in the 12th round with the 356th overall pick … a junior at the University of Kansas, the San Jose, Calif., native batted .419 (40-for-123) with 18 runs, six doubles, one triple, two home runs, 21 RBI, 18 walks and five stolen bases during the 2017 season … in 2016, he was named to the Academic All-Big 12 First Team … his brother, Tim, played football at the University of Colorado, Boulder.
Right-handed pitcher Shameko Smith, a native of Abaco, Bahamas, was selected in the 13th round with the 386th overall pick … a freshman at Polk State College in Winter Haven, Fla., Smith made 14 appearances (12 starts) for the Eagles and went 4-1 with one complete game and a 2.48 ERA (61.2 IP, 17 ER) with 18 walks and 67 strikeouts.
Catcher Nic Motley, a freshman out of McLennan Community College in Waco, Texas, was selected in the 14th round with the 416th overall pick … played 34 games his freshman season and batted .182 (18-for-97) with four doubles, three home runs, 20 RBI, 15 walks and six stolen bases … allowed 15 stolen bases and recorded 10 caught stealings … is a native of Southlake, Texas, where he attended Southlake Carroll High School.
Right-handed pitcher Colton Hathcock of Atoka, Tenn., was selected with the 446th overall pick in the 15th round … the 6-2, 217-pound 21-year-old went 3-4 in 26 appearances, four starts in his junior season at the University of Memphis with a 3.95 ERA (48.0 IP, 21 ER), 26 walks and 62 strikeouts.
Shortstop Alan Trejo was selected out of San Diego State University in the 16th round with the 476th overall pick … in 62 games for the Aztecs, batted .332 (89-for-268) with 58 runs, 17 doubles, four home runs, 36 RBI, 28 walks and 10 stolen bases … attended Warren High School in Downey, Calif., where he was a three-time All-CIF Division III First-Team honoree … a native of Los Angeles, Calif., he majors in aerospace engineering.
Third baseman Jeff Bohling, a senior at Gonzaga University, was selected with the 506th overall pick in the 17th round … batted .270 (53-for-196) with 26 runs, eight doubles, two home runs, 26 RBI, 18 walks and four stolen bases during the 2017 season … the Bellevue, Wash., native led off the 2017 season with a 10-game hitting streak … in 2016, was named WCC Player of the Year and was First-Team All-West Region and First-Team All-WCC after batting .298 (73-for-245) with 14 runs, 23 doubles, four triples, eight home runs, 50 RBI, 25 walks and 10 stolen bases.
Right-handed pitcher Garrett Schilling, a junior at Xavier University, was selected in the 18th round with the 536th overall pick … converted to a starter in 2017, and went 6-4 with a 3.57 ERA (85.2 IP, 34 ER), 27 walks and 52 strikeouts … the Madison Heights, Mich., native was the closer in 2016, going 4-3 with 14 saves with a 1.91 ERA (42.1 IP, 9 ER) in 29 appearances en route to being named to the All-BIG EAST Second Team and the BIG EAST All-Tournament Team.
Center fielder Joey Bartosic, a native of Oakton, Va., was selected in the 19th round with the 566th overall pick out of George Washington University … the 6-0, 190-pound outfielder batted .333 (79-for-237) with 39 runs, 14 doubles, one home run, 26 RBI, 24 walks and 24 stolen bases in his senior year at GW in 2017 … in 2016, was a ABCA/Rawlings All-East Region First-Team selection and a First-Team All-Atlantic 10 selection in his second consecutive year as Most Valuable Player at GW.
Right fielder Casey Golden, a junior at UNC Wilmington, was selected in the 20th round with the 596th overall pick … he was named Coastal Athletic Association Player of the Year this past season after batting .310 (70-for-226) with 55 runs, 13 doubles, 21 home runs, 42 RBI, 25 walks and six stolen bases … also in 2017, was named First-Team All-CAA, a CAA All-Tournament selection, and was CAA Player of the Week twice … the 6-foot-2, 210-pound outfielder is a native of Greensboro N.C.
Right-handed pitcher Nate Harris was selected in the 21st round with the 626th overall pick out of Louisiana Tech University … the senior posted a 9-1 record with a 2.31 ERA (93.2 IP, 24 ER) in 22 appearances with nine starts … earned eight saves, and pitched complete games in all nine of his starts … his first two career starts were complete game shutouts.… the 6-foot, 180-pound San Antonio, Texas, native is a finalist for the 2017 Golden Spikes Award.
Outfielder Daniel Jipping, a senior at Central Michigan University, was selected with the 656th overall pick in the 22nd round … a native of Canton, Mich., Jipping batted .309 (64-for-207, ranked first on team) with 47 runs, 17 doubles (ranked first on team), one triple, 11 home runs (ranked first on team), 61 RBI (ranked first on team), 41 walks (ranked first on team) and four stolen bases (ranked first on team) during his junior season at Central Michigan … in 2016, led his team in runs (44), doubles (16), home runs (6), RBI (42), total bases (105), slugging percentage (.484) and walks (32) … was named Second-Team All-MAC and an Academic All-MAC following the 2016 season.
Third baseman Danny Edgeworth was selected with the 686th overall pick in the 23rd round out of Mercer University … the 6-foot-3, 195-pound senior batted .332 (71-for-214) with 38 runs, 14 doubles, one triple, eight home runs, 14 RBI, 32 walks and three stolen bases in his senior year … was named the Southern Conference Player of the Month for February after batting .538 (14-for-26) with 10 runs, 10 RBI, and four extra-base hits.
Right-handed pitcher Jesse Lepore was selected in the 24th round with the 716th overall pick … 6-foot-4, 220-pound junior out of the University of Miami went 1-6 with a 4.83 ERA (69.0 IP, 37 ER) with 31 walks and 56 strikeouts in 15 appearances with 13 starts for the Hurricanes in 2017 … in his career at Miami, has a record of 10-6 with a 3.33 ERA (156.2 IP, 58 ER), 66 walks and 123 strikeouts … attended Trinity Catholic High School in Ocala, Fla., where he was ranked the 210th-best high school prospect by Perfect Game.
Right-handed pitcher Derrik Watson, a senior at Murray State University, was selected in the 25th round with the 746th overall pick … the 6-foot-2, 180-pound St. Louis, Mo., native made 21 relief appearances for the Racers and posted a 9.89 ERA (26 ER, 23.2 IP) with 14 walks and 38 strikeouts … previously attended Southwestern Illinois Community College.
Right fielder Aubrey McCarty, a switch-hitting junior at Florida A&M University, was selected with the 776th overall pick in the 26th round … batted .299 (61-for-204) with 32 runs, 12 doubles, one triple, eight home runs, 51 RBI and 17 walks … the doubles, runs, and RBI were team highs … the 6-foot-5, 225-pound native of Doerun, Ga., previously attended Vanderbilt (2015) and Gordon State (2016).
Right-handed pitcher Brandon Lambright was selected with the 806th overall pick in the 27th round out of Abilene Christian University … went 1-2 with a 7.94 ERA (39.2 IP, 35 ER), 32 walks and 55 strikeouts in 22 appearances with two starts … the 6-foot-3, 215-pound senior and Friday Harbor, Wash., native missed the entire 2016 season after recovering from Tommy John Surgery.
Left fielder Brett Stephens, a left-handed hitter out of UCLA, was selected with the 836th overall pick in the 28th round … a native of Moraga, Calif., Stephens batted .279 (58-for-209) with 38 runs, 12 doubles, one triple, two home runs, 21 RBI, 23 walks and six stolen bases en route to becoming an All-Pac-12 honorable mention.
Second baseman Todd Czinege (ZIN-uh-ghee) was selected out of Villanova University with the 866th overall pick in the 29th round … the senior led Villanova with his .283 (52-for-184) batting average, three home runs and 25 RBI … also drove in 17 runs with seven doubles and three triples … is a three-time All-BIG EAST selection … in his career, the 6-foot-2, 204-pound Overland Park, Kan., native batted .307 (244-for-796) with 107 runs, 40 doubles, 10 triples, 13 home runs, 128 RBI, 72 walks and 16 stolen bases.
Second baseman Jeff Moberg, a redshirt senior at the University of Tennessee, was selected with the 896th overall pick in the 30th round … batted .311 (65-for-209) with 32 runs, 10 doubles, three triples, nine home runs, 33 RBI, 16 walks and five stolen bases in 51 games in 2017 … sustained a knee injury in 2016 that limited him to 16 games … the 5-foot-9, 170-pound infielder is a native of Murrieta, Calif., where he attended Vista Murrieta High School.
Left-handed pitcher Reagan Biechler was selected out of Wichita State University with the 926th overall pick in the 31st round … went 1-2 with a 2.84 ERA (31.2 IP, 10 ER), 11 walks and 40 strikeouts for the Shockers in 2017 … is a native of Colorado Springs, Colo., and attended Pine Creek High School … was named First-Team All-State and First-Team All-Colorado … was named First-Team All-Conference twice and First-Team All-Area twice.
Right-handed pitcher Moises Ceja, a senior out of UCLA, was selected in the 32nd round with the 956th overall pick … a native of Arleta, Calif., the 6-foot, 168-pound pitcher made 21 appearances including 10 starts for the Bruins in 2017 … went 2-5 with a 3.52 ERA (61.1 IP, 24 ER), 20 walks and 42 strikeouts … in his career at UCLA, went 4-6 with four saves (all in 2016) and a 3.09 ERA (96.0 IP, 33 ER), 32 walks and 70 strikeouts.
Left-handed pitcher Alec Byrd was selected in the 33rd round with the 986th overall pick … the 6-foot-3, 175-pound senior from Miami Shores, Fla., went 4-2 with a 4.31 ERA (31.1 IP, 15 ER), 18 walks and 35 strikeouts for the College World Series-bound Seminoles in 2017 … was previously selected in the 37th round of the 2013 MLB First-Year Player Draft out of St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., but did not sign … was a Louisville Slugger First-Team All-American and a Florida Athletic Coaches Association First-Team All-State honoree in 2013.
Right-handed pitcher Hayden Roberts, a junior out of Southern Mississippi University, was selected with the 1,016th overall pick in the 34th round … went 5-2 with one save, a 4.30 ERA (73.1 IP, 35 ER), 27 walks and 86 strikeouts in 10 starts in 2017 … the 6-foot, 187-pound native of Irvington, Ala., previously played for Alabama Southern Community College.
Right-handed pitcher James Notary was selected out of Broomfield High School in Broomfield, Colo., with the 1,046th overall pick in the 35th round … in three years at Broomfield, the senior went 11-3 with a 1.87 ERA in 15 starts with three complete game shutouts … was named CHSAA/MaxPreps All-State First-Team for 2016-2017 … he was ranked by MaxPreps as the third-best high school prospect in Colorado.
Right-handed pitcher Michael Agis (AG-iss) was selected with the 1,076th overall pick in the 36th round out of Florida International University … the 5-foot-11, 190-pound senior played two years for the Panthers and combined to go 2-4 with a 5.96 ERA (77.0 IP, 51 ER), 25 walks and 81 strikeouts … the San Antonio, Texas, native played at Broward College from 2013-15, where he earned All-Conference recognition and was an Academic All-American.
Third baseman Tyler Hardman, the third high school selection for the Rockies in this draft, was selected out of Temescal Canyon High School in Lake Elsinore, Calif., with the 1,106th overall pick in the 37th round … a senior who made varsity in his freshman year after batting .446 in 23 junior varsity games, Hardman batted .526 (40-for-76) with 23 runs, 11 doubles, four triples, nine home runs and 44 RBI in 26 games played his senior year.
Right-handed pitcher Drake Davis was selected with the 1,136th overall pick in the 38th round out of Ralston Valley High School in Arvada, Colo. … he is the second Colorado high school selection for the Rockies in this draft following right-handed pitcher James Notary, who was selected in the 35th round … went 4-3 with one save and a 2.77 ERA in his senior season, and also batted .349 (15-for-43) with five doubles, one triple, two home runs and 10 RBI in nine games played as outfielder.
Center fielder Colin Hall was selected in the 39th round with the 1,166th overall pick out of Wesleyan High School in Norcross, Ga. … the son of Georgia Tech head coach Danny Hall, the left-handed hitter is a 2017 Rawlings-Perfect Game Honorable Mention All-American, and has committed to Georgia Tech.
Catcher J.T. Stanley was selected in the 40th round with the 1,196th overall pick, the final selection of the 2017 draft for the Rockies … a senior at Centennial High School in Peoria, Ariz, Stanley batted .342 (25-for-73) with 17 runs, seven doubles and 19 RBI in his senior season.
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