South Carolina well-represented on second day of MLB draft
The Baltimore Orioles selected junior first baseman Christian Walker in the fourth round. Walker was the 132nd overall pick in the draft and the first Gamecock taken. Walker earned first-team All-SEC honors this season and currently leads the team in batting average and home runs. The first baseman also started on both of South Carolina's national championship teams and has the 10th-most career hits of all-time for USC, with a total of 238. The Pennsylvania native was previously drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 49th round following his senior season of high school.
The Orioles also selected junior pitcher Matt Price in the seventh round, as the 222nd player taken. Price, who has served as the Gamecocks' closer since 2010, is the all-time save leader at USC with 40. He is currently one save away from tying the SEC record. The right-hander was selected in the sixth round by the Arizona Diamondbacks last season, but chose to return to South Carolina for his redshirt junior year. Price has been on the mound for both of the Gamecocks' national championships, earning the win against UCLA in 2010 and picking up a save against Florida in 2011.
The Arizona Diamondbacks took junior center fielder Evan Marzilli in the eighth round with the 273rd pick. Marzilli was named to the SEC All-Defensive Team this season, after taking over as the Gamecocks center fielder following the departure of Jackie Bradley, Jr. Marzilli is one of just two players to have started every game this season for South Carolina. The junior is currently tied for South Carolina's single-season record for sacrifice flies with eight. Marzilli was a starter for each of USC's national championship squads and was named to the 2010 College World Series All-Tournament Team.
The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim selected senior pitcher Michael Roth in the ninth round of the draft. Roth, the 297th player taken, has been a Gamecock captain for the past two seasons. The Cleveland Indians selected Roth in the 31st round in last year's draft, before he decided to return for his senior campaign. The left-hander started both of South Carolina's national championship-clinching games. Roth is 23-6 in his career at USC and is second all-time in appearances among South Carolina pitchers. The Greer, S.C., native has started four games at the College World Series in his career. Roth was named an All-American in 2011 and was also honored as CollegeBaseballInsider.com's National Player of the Year last season.
The Gamecocks had 11 players selected in last year's draft, one short of the SEC record, which was set by Vanderbilt last season. The Major League Baseball Draft concludes today with rounds 16-40, starting at noon.