Looking Back on Kentucky Baseball's Highest-Ever MLB Draft Picks

Unlike both the NBA and NFL Drafts, the MLB Draft is unique, as it takes place right in the middle of the active season. Sunday night kicks off the 59th annual MLB Draft, which will continue through Tuesday. There are 20 rounds in the draft, totaling 614 players who will begin their climb to the majors. Significant contributors to Kentucky baseball‘s Super Regional run this past spring such as Devin Burkes, Mason Moore, and Logan Martin all may hear their names called this weekend.

Dating all the way back to 1959, 173 different Wildcats have been selected in the MLB Draft, with 46 making the major leagues. Legendary names such as Cotton Nash, future NL Cy Young Award winner Brandon Webb, and future World Series champion Joe Blanton all started their careers in Lexington. Seven players have been selected in the first round, with the most recent being LHP Zack Thompson back in 2019 (No. 19).

The highest-ever draft pick from Kentucky came all the way back in 1975 when outfielder Everett Murray was selected with the fifth overall pick by the Baltimore Orioles. Although Murray and outfielder Chad Green (who was selected with the eighth overall pick by the Milwaukee Brewers in 1996) are the highest-ever drafted players from Kentucky, neither of them would make the major leagues. 2016 Second Team All-SEC first baseman Evan White is the highest-drafted Wildcat to make the Major Leagues, as he was selected with the 17th overall pick in the 2017 MLB Draft by the Seattle Mariners.

After spending time in the Mariners’ minor league system from 2017-2019, White made his Major League debut on July 24th, 2020 — Opening Day for the COVID-19 shortened season. Although his hitting stats weren’t the greatest (White’s .176 average was the lowest among all qualifying hitters in the shortened 60-game season), his stellar defense earned him his first Gold Glove Award at the conclusion of the season. After playing in 54 of 60 games that season, White has played in just 30 games since the beginning of the 2021 season due to multiple injuries. He began the 2023 season in Tacoma (Seattle’s Triple-A team) but would undergo another procedure on his left hip on May 9th, causing him to miss another three months.

LHP Zack Thompson is the most recent Wildcat to be drafted in the first round, as the St. Louis Cardinals selected him with the 19th overall pick in the 2019 MLB Draft. After three years in the minor leagues, Thompson made his Major League debut on June 3rd, 2022. He has been a solid arm out of the bullpen for the Cardinals since his debut, boasting a 2.72 ERA over 46.1 innings pitched with 45 strikeouts.

Future MLB mainstays RHP Joe Blanton (24th pick in 2002 MLB Draft) and LHP James Paxton (37th pick in 2009 MLB Draft) round out some of the highest-drafted Wildcats. Both pitchers found immense success in the majors, as Blanton would win a World Series with the Phillies in 2008 and Paxton would become just the second Canadian-born pitcher to throw a no-hitter on May 8th, 2018.

Blanton played for eight different teams over the span of 13 years, earning a reputation as a valuable rental arm. He originally retired in 2014 but came out of retirement in 2015 to pitch for the Kansas City Royals. He last pitched for a team back in 2017. Blanton finished his career with a 4.38 ERA over 1,767.2 innings pitched with 1,284 strikeouts. He was named Kentucky’s 2023 SEC Baseball Legend prior to the 2023 season.

Although he was selected with the 37th pick in the Draft, James Paxton opted to return to Kentucky for his senior season. However, he was deemed ineligible to do so, forcing him to begin his path to the majors in the Independent American Association. He was selected in the fourth round of the 2010 MLB Draft by the Seattle Mariners organization, where he would spend the first eight years of his professional career.

Pax made his Major League debut on September 7th, 2013, the start of an impressive five-year run that culminated with a no-hitter against the Toronto Blue Jays in 2018. Following his trade to the New York Yankees in late 2018, he has dealt with numerous injury problems. He has returned to fashion as of late, earning 2023 AL Pitcher of the Month honors in June with the Boston Red Sox.

Although no Wildcats are expected to go extraordinarily high in tonight’s draft, that means nothing in the long run. We’ll have to wait and see if the next great pro-Cat starts his journey tonight. The Draft is scheduled to get underway at 7:00 PM EST on MLB Network.