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It took awhile to get started, but high school players were flying off the board in the first round of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft.
Considered a deep draft, especially among the pitchers and outfielders, the Class of 2018 didn't have a first round pick until
Jarred Kelenic of
West (Waukesha, Wis.) was chosen with the No. 6 overall pick by the New York Mets.
Kelenic's selection started a run of high school players with 17 of the final 24 selections coming from the prep ranks. That's the most high school players chosen in the first round since 17 were chosen in the first round of 2000.
Six high school pitchers went in the first round, led by
Loretto (Tenn.) left-hander
Ryan Weathers, the son of former MLB pitcher David Weathers, who was chosen No. 7 overall by the Padres. He went one spot ahead of
Carter Stewart of
Eau Gallie (Melbourne, Fla.), the top-ranked high school pitcher by Perfect Game, who went to the Atlanta Braves at No. 8.
Other pitchers chosen included
Grayson Rodriguez of
Central Heights (Nacogdoches, Texas) at No. 11 to the Orioles,
Cole Winn of
Orange Lutheran (Orange, Calif.) at No. 15 to the Rangers,
Matthew Liberatore of
Mountain Ridge (Glendale, Ariz.) at No. 16 to Tampa Bay,
Mason Denaburg of
Merritt Island (Fla.) at No. 27 to the Nationals and
J.T. Ginn of
Brandon (Miss.) at No. 30 to the Dodgers.
Florida had four prep players chosen with
Conner Scott of
Plant (Tampa, Fla.), chosen No. 13 by the Marlins, and
Triston Casas of
American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.), chosen No. 26 by the Red Sox, joining Stewart and Denaburg.
A total of 37 high school players were chosen on the first day of the draft that included two rounds and several compensatory rounds. However, a number of high-ranking players are still available for tomorrow when the draft continues with rounds 3-10.
A pair of Georgia pitchers,
Cole Wilcox of
Heritage (Ringgold, Ga.) and
Kumar Rocker of
North Oconee (Bogart, Ga.), are the highest-ranking players on the board while
Mike Siani of
William Penn Charter (Philadelphia, Pa.) is the top outfield prospect available and shortstop
Nander De Sedas of
Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) is the top infield prospect available.
Orange Lutheran's Cole Winn was taken No. 15 by the Texas Rangers in the first round of the 2018 MLB Draft. He was one of 17 high school players taken in the first round, the most since 2000.
Photo by Alyson Boyer Rode
