OTTAWA- Junior National Team catcher Andy Yerzy (Toronto, ON) was selected 52nd overall in the second round of the 2016 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks on Thursday night. He becomes the first current member of the Junior National Team program to be selected in the 2016 draft.
The 17 year-old joined the Junior National Team program in October 2013 as a 15 year-old and has been with the club ever since. He represented Canada at the WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup in Osaka, Japan last September and recently returned from the Junior National Team’s annual Dominican Summer League tour in late May.
Yerzy joins a list of former Junior National Team catchers to be selected in the first three rounds of the draft including Brett Lawrie (16th overall by Milwaukee in 2008), Kellin Deglan (22nd overall by Texas in 2010) and Justin Morneau (89th overall by Minnesota in 1999).
Yerzy jumped into the MLB Draft spotlight last summer when he advanced to the final round of the MLB Junior Home Run Derby in Cincinnati where he tied for the overall crown in front of a sold out crowd at Great American Ballpark. After participating in the prestigious Area Code Games in Long Beach, California, the product of the Toronto Mets organization headed to the Under Armour All-America Game at Wrigley Field in Chicago where he hit an opposite field home run before collecting game MVP honours.
Yerzy is committed to the University of Notre Dame.
“(It was an) unbelievable feeling accomplishing a dream I've had since I was 5 years old,” tweeted Yerzy after the selection. “(I) Just wanted to say thanks to all my family and friends that supported me, as well as Baseball Canada and the Toronto Mets for helping me develop into the player I am today.”
Cal Quantrill, who was selected eighth overall by the San Diego Padres and Yerzy were the only two Canadians selected on day one of the MLB First-Year Player Draft that saw the first 77 picks take place. Day two of the draft gets under Friday (1pm ET) with rounds three through ten before rounds 11-40 take place on Saturday (Noon ET).
Canadians selected in 2016 MLB Draft
*1. RHP Cal Quantrill (Port Hope, ON) – San Diego Padres – 1st Round (8th overall), Stanford University
*2. C Andrew Yerzy (Toronto, ON) – Arizona Diamondbacks – 2nd Round (52nd overall), Junior National Team/Toronto Mets
*Current or former member of the Junior National Team program
