Hard-throwing right-hander Logan Gilbert became the highest draft pick in Stetson baseball history on Monday night.
The Seattle Mariners selected the 6-foot-6, 225-pounder with the 14th overall pick in Monday's opening round of the MLB draft. Gilbert is only the third Hatter ever taken in the first round, joining Brian Snyder (26th overall, 2003, Oakland) and Kevin Nicholson (27th overall, 1997, San Diego).
"I think it's huge for the program," Hatters coach Steve Trimper said. "Logan has earned this. He's worked extremely hard, especially as a guy who went undrafted out of high school, to get to where he is now."
Gilbert was not available for comment on Monday night, choosing to celebrate privately with his family and teammates at Melching Field.
According to MLB.com, the No. 14 pick holds an approximate signing bonus value of $3.9 million. Last year, the Kansas City Royals handed Huntington Beach (Calif.) High School first baseman Nick Pratto a $3.45 million bonus after selecting him 14th overall.
A former infielder at Wekiva High School in Apopka, Gilbert blossomed in 2017 with a dominant sophomore campaign (10-0 with 2.02 ERA) and a strong showing in the Cape Cod League. He backed it up with even better numbers as a junior.
Gilbert leads all Division I pitchers with 157 strikeouts in 107 innings, including 14 Ks in Saturday night's regional win over Oklahoma State.
"Logan is a polished, accomplished college pitcher," Mariners director of amateur scouting Scott Hunter said. "He is a strikeout pitcher who controls the zone and wins, as evidenced by his 21-1 mark over the past two years. This is a player we felt we had no chance at coming out of the summer. We are truly excited to add this type of talent to our organization."
For the year, Gilbert holds an 11-1 record with a 2.52 ERA, and opponents have batted just .172 against him. Two weeks ago, he became the first pitcher named the ASUN's Pitcher of the Year in consecutive seasons.
"The amazing thing about those numbers is that his stuff was down at the beginning of the spring compared to last summer," draft analyst Jonathan Mayo said during the MLB Network's live broadcast. "He was thought of in maybe the third tier of college arms. Because the stuff starting ticking back up as the season went on, he moved back up the ladder and was thought to go somewhere in this neck of the woods."
In his three-year career, Gilbert is 23-2 with a 2.38 ERA in 245.1 innings at Stetson. He joins an organization in desperate need of impact arms.
Entering the 2018 season, Baseball America rated the Mariners' farm system as the worst in the major leagues. Only twice in the past decade has Seattle spent a first-round pick on a college pitcher.
"When you look at (Gilbert), you see a fair amount of projection to what he can be. He came late to pitching, so he's a little more raw than the average college guy," said Teddy Cahill, a national writer for Baseball America. "He instantly becomes one of their top prospects."