Powers, Butler Chosen Tuesday In MLB Draft
STARKVILLE, Miss. - Two members of the 2010 Mississippi State University baseball team were selected Tuesday on the second day of Major League Baseball's 2010 First-Year Player Draft.
Senior first baseball Connor Powers from Naperville, Ill., was tabbed by the San Diego Padres in the 21st round (634th pick overall) while senior infielder Jet Butler of Pensacola, Fla., was a 26th round pick of the New York Mets (782nd overall pick).
Powers hit a career-best .379 this season, leading the Bulldogs with 81 hits, 18 doubles, 16 home runs and 68 RBI. He concluded his four-year MSU career with a .333 batting average and 251 hits in 202 games. He finished ranked fourth at MSU with 54 career home runs and tied for fifth with 206 career RBI.
Butler ranked third on the club with a .329 batting average. He drew starts at second base, third base, in left field and right field and as the Bulldogs' designated hitter in 2010. His 50 hits included 17 extra-base knocks. The switch-hitting Butler posted a .300 batting average in 189 career games played, lashing 183 hits with 98 RBI and 11 career stolen bases, second-most on the 2010 MSU club.
A member of MSU's 2009-10 baseball recruiting class, Meridian (Miss.) Community College outfielder Corey Dickerson of Brookhaven, Miss., was an eighth round pick of the Colorado Rockies (206th selection overall) Monday and the third Mississippian chosen in the 2010 draft.
The 2010 MLB draft concludes Wednesday with rounds 30 through 50.