Pittsburgh Pirates At MLB Draft: Day Two Picks
By Larry Snyder
The Pittsburgh Pirates continued their search for buried treasure Tuesday during Rounds 3 through 10 of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. The event got underway at 1 p.m. ET.
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This year marks the 50th anniversary of the MLB Draft and it is being held at the MLB Network’s Studio 42 in Secaucus, New Jersey. Former Pirates Omar Moreno and Jack Wilson are in the Garden State representing the team.
The first and second rounds were conducted Monday evening with MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred presiding over the opening round. Neil Huntington and the Pirates selected shortstop Kevin Newman from the University of Arizona with the 19th pick overall in the first round.
Pittsburgh chose third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes from Concordia Lutheran High School in Tomball, Texas, near Houston with the 32nd pick overall in the first round. The Bucs attained a Compensation Pick at No. 32 because the Toronto Blue Jays signed free agent catcher Russell Martin.
The Pirates closed out the first day of the draft by choosing shortstop Kevin Kramer from UCLA with the 62nd pick overall in the second round. You can catch up on these three newest members of the Bucs Family here on City of Champions Sports.
Let’s take a look at how Day 2 has gone with this breakdown of the Pirates selections:
ROUND 3: The Bucs started off by choosing 21-year-old leftfielder Casey Hughston from Alabama with the 96th pick of the third round. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound sophomore bats left and throws right. He hit .332/.389/.502 with six home runs, 44 RBIs and 12 stolen bases in 60 games this season for the Crimson Tide.
ROUND 4: Pittsburgh sought help for on the mound with the 127th pick of the fourth round. They selected 19-year-old righthander Jacob Taylor from Pearl River Community College in Poplarville, Mississippi. According to MLBPipeline.com, the 6-foot-3, 215-pound pitching prospect “offers good athleticism and a sound delivery with a fastball that sits around 93 mph but can reach 97.”
Pittsburgh Pirates
ROUND 5: Another pitcher was added with 157th pick of the fifth round. The Bucs went with 21-year-old lefthander Brandon Waddell from the University of Virginia. The 6-foot3, 180-pound junior put up a 10-3 record for the Cavaliers with a 2.45 ERA. He contributed 73 strikeouts in 114 innings over 18 starts in 2015.
ROUND 6: The Pirates were not done stockpiling arms as they chose 21-year-old righthander Jonathan Brubaker from the University of Akron with the 187th pick of the sixth round. The 6-fot-4, 175-pound junior struck out 72 batters over 89.1 innings in recording a 5-4 record for the Zips.
ROUND 7: Pittsburgh picked up another third baseman with 217th pick of the seventh round. They selected 21-year-old Mitchell Tolman from the University of Oregon. The 5-foot-11, 195-pound junior bats right and throws right. He hit .325/.457/.468 with 40 RBI and more walks than strikeouts this season for the Ducks .
ROUND 8: It was back to the mound with the 247th pick of the eighth round. The Pirates liked 21-year-old Seth McGarry from Florida Atlantic University. According to MLB.com, the 6-foot, 180-pound junior “opened eyes in the Cape Cod League last summer and has kept it up this spring, touching 97 mph consistently and sitting in the mid-90s.”
ROUND 9: The Bucs continued to mine the college ranks for pitchers as they took 21-year-old righthander Bret Helton from the University of Utah with the 277th pick of the ninth round. According to the staff at Baseball America, the 6-foot-3, 215-pound junior “throws 93-94 MPH with a cutter and curveball.” His father is former San Francisco 49er Barry Helton.
ROUND 10: Pittsburgh concluded the second day with 21-year-old righthander Logan Sendelbach from Tiffin University. He was the 307th pick of the tenth round. The 6-foot-3, 185-pound junior threw 57 innings this season, striking out 50 batters for the Dragons.
The 2015 MLB First-Year Player Draft will wrap up Wednesday with Rounds 11-40 beginning at Noon ET. Exclusive coverage of the event can be seen at MLB.com. What do you think about the Pirates choices on Tuesday? Let me know in the comments section below.
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