The best draft in K-State baseball history
The best draft in K-State baseball history continued today as the San Diego Padres selected reliever Tyson Neighbors with the 118th pick in the fourth round. That was followed not long after by Jackson Wentworth being taken in the fifth round, with the 158th pick, by the Toronto Blue Jays.
Kaelen Culpepper’s first round selection last night with the 21st pick by the Minnesota Twins tied him with Jordan Wicks as the highest-drafted player in school history, not counting supplemental and January drafts. Neighbors becomes the seventh-highest Wildcat selection; Wentworth is thirteenth.
The new list:
- 1T. Jordan Hicks, P, 2021, Chicago Cubs (1, #21)
- 1T. Kaelen Culpepper, SS, 2024, Minnesota Twins (1, #21)
- 3. Jack Woolsey, OF, 1969, San Francisco Giants (2, #42)
- 4. Carter Jurica, SS, 2010, San Francisco Giants (3, #105)
- 5. A.J. Morris, P, 2009, Washington Nationals (4, #112)
- 6. Ted Power, P, 1976, Los Angeles Dodgers (5, #115)
- 7. Tyson Neighbors, P, 2024, San Diego Padres (4, #118)
- 8. Evan Marshall, P, 2011, Arizona Diamondbacks (4, #124)
- 9. Jason King, 3B, 2011, Detroit Tigers (4, #137)
- 10. Mickey Blount, P, 1998, Minnesota Twins (5, #139)
- 11. Heath Schesser, SS, 1997, Detroit Tigers (5, #145)
- 12. Jared King, OF, 2013, New York Mets (5, #146)
- 13. Jackson Wentworth, P, 2024, Toronto Blue Jays (5, #158)
Neighbors, a second-team All-Big 12 selection in 2024, had a 3.96 ERA and 9 saves in 22 appearances for the Wildcats, striking out 61 batters in 38.2 innings. Wentworth, who received honorable mention from the conference, went 5-6 with a 4.24 ERA, with 115 strikeouts in 87 innings. Both pitchers had extremely strong strikeout/walk ratios and limited opposing hitters to sub-.230 batting averages.