Four Alabama baseball players selected on Day 2 of 2023 MLB Draft

Alabama had four student-athletes selected on day two of the 2023 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.

Andrew Pinckney (102^nd Overall | Washington Nationals) and Grayson Hitt (112^th Overall | Arizona Diamondbacks) each went in the fourth round to start the afternoon. Hunter Furtado (167^th Overall | Pittsburgh Pirates) followed in the sixth round, while Caden Rose (208^th Overall | Boston Red Sox) capped off the day, hearing his name called in round seven.

In addition to the current players, signee Bryce Eldridge was selected in the first round at pick No. 16 Sunday night by the San Francisco Giants. Day two saw signee A.J. Ewing (4^th Round – Competitive Balance | 134^th Overall | New York Mets) also get drafted.

Alabama in the MLB Draft

• With the four selections, the Crimson Tide’s all-time draft pick total moved to 168 (158 players) since the event’s inception in 1966
• The Tide’s four picks through the first 10 rounds of the 2023 MLB Draft tie the 2021 and 1983 teams for the most selections through the first 10 rounds of any draft in program history
• Alabama has had at least one player drafted for 45 consecutive years dating back to 1979
• The Tide has had one-or-more players selected in 52 of the 58 MLB Drafts overall
• UA has seen 63 players drafted in the last 13 years
• A total of 98 players have been taken out of The University of Alabama in the last 23 drafts dating back to 2000
• Excluding the abbreviated 2020 MLB Draft, Alabama has had 14 pitchers taken in the last five drafts, including three-or-more in three separate times

The 2023 MLB First-Year Player Draft began on Sunday, July 9 and will continue through Tuesday, July 11. The three-day event will be featured on MLB.com. Fans can also follow along with each pick at the site.

All players that have remaining eligibility are able to return to the University to continue their careers at Alabama if they elect to not sign a professional contract.

Andrew Pinckney (4^th Round | 102^nd Overall | Washington Nationals)

Outfielder, Redshirt Junior

• Grown into one of the Tide’s top performers across three seasons at Alabama
• Has played in 167 games with 144 starts after redshirting his first year at the Capstone
• Batting .308 (167-543) for his career with 32 doubles, six triples and 26 home runs
• Added 101 RBI and 119 runs scored while drawing 60 walks and stealing 17 bases in three years
• Totaled 13 outfield assists to tie for the seventh on the Alabama career list
• Capitalized on a breakout sophomore campaign to put together an even more impressive 2023 effort, earning ABCA/Rawlings All-Southeast Region First Team honors to go with second team All-SEC recognition
• Also tabbed to the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional All-Tournament Team and SEC Baseball All-Tournament Team this past season
• Batted .339 (79-233) with a team-high 12 doubles to go with three triples and 18 homers for 151 total bases as a junior
• Also contributed 58 RBI, 55 runs, 40 walks, seven hit-by-pitch and eight stolen bases
• Led UA and tied for ninth in the SEC for total bases while his team-leading 79 hits finished 15^th in the league
• Ranked 13^th in the conference for slugging at .648, a total that was second on UA
• Also ranked second for the Tide in home runs, RBI, runs, walks and on-base percentage (.442) while tying for second on the team in stolen bases
• Made 56 starts while playing in all 58 games during the 2022 campaign
• Batted .303 (63-208) with 14 doubles, three triples and seven home runs as a sophomore
• Paced the 2022 roster in doubles, runs, hit-by-pitch (10) and slugging (.500) while tying for the team lead and tying for eighth in the SEC for triples (3)
• Finished his first full season at UA with 45 games played and 24 starts in 2021
• Did not see action in 2020
• Earned his undergraduate degree in May 2023 and was named to the College Sports Communicators’ Academic All-District 4 Team this spring
• Selected as the SEC Co-Scholar Athlete of the Year in 2023
• Named to the SEC Spring Academic Honor Roll three times (2021-23)

Grayson Hitt (4^th Round | 112^th Overall | Arizona Diamondbacks)

Pitcher, Junior

• A highly recruited arm that has grown each season with the Crimson Tide
• Began his career in the bullpen before earning a weekend starter role each of the last two years
• Totaled 33 appearances with 25 starts and owns a 9-7 record with a 5.81 ERA (76 ER/117.2 IP) for his career
• Earned preseason All-America honors in 2023 but saw his season cut short due to injury
• Went 3-1 with a 4.19 ERA (18 ER/38.2 IP) across eight weekend starts prior to his exit
• Led Alabama with 49 strikeouts and was limiting opposing hitters to a .206 average that ranked ninth in the SEC at the time he was shut down
• Served as the Tide’s Sunday starter in 2022, finishing 4-3 with a 5.34 ERA (36 ER/60.2 IP) across 14 starts
• Ranked second on UA for strikeouts with 68, recording five-plus Ks in seven starts on the year
• The Tide’s most called-upon freshman in 2021, totaling 11 appearances, three of which were starts
• Contributed 18.1 innings of work and 16 strikeouts while finishing with a 2-3 record as a freshman
• Also performed in the classroom, earning a spot on the College Sports Communicators’ Academic All-District 4 Team in 2023 to go with SEC Spring Academic Honor Roll recognition 

Hunter Furtado (6^th Round | 167^th Overall | Pittsburgh Pirates)

Pitcher, Junior

• A power arm out the Tide bullpen each of the last two years
• Has appeared in 34 total games while making two starts for the Crimson Tide
• Owns a 4-3 record with a 5.56 ERA (42 ER/68.0 IP) and 71 strikeouts compared to 33 walks
• Saw time in 17 games with two starts during the 2023 slate, owning a 1-1 record with a 4.75 ERA (19 ER/36.0 IP)
• Went 3-2 with a 6.47 ERA (23 ER/32.0 IP) in his first season at the Capstone
• Ranked third for appearances with 17 as a sophomore, all of which came in relief
• Recorded 33 strikeouts in 2022 to tie for the second-most by a reliever and sixth overall among UA’s pitching staff
• Began his collegiate career at Wake Forest in 2021, appearing in 22 games for the Demon Deacons

Caden Rose (7^th Round | 208^th Overall | Boston Red Sox)

Outfielder, Junior

• An elite defender for the Crimson Tide the past three years
• Seen time in 150 games with 130 starts across three seasons, starting mostly in center while also contributing on the infield
• Batting .260 (112-431) with 28 doubles, two triples and 14 home runs for his career
• Also accumulated 61 RBI, 93 runs, 64 walks and 13 stolen bases in three seasons
• Finished 2023 with a .261 (40-153) average that included 10 doubles and nine home runs
• Added 26 RBI and 45 runs while drawing 26 walks, being hit by four pitches and swiping a team-high tying nine bases
• Led the Tide in average as a sophomore with a .326 (46-141) mark while also pacing the team in on-base percentage at .435
• Called into duty for 54 games of action as a freshman, including 42 starts in center field
• Earned a spot on the College Sports Communicators’ Academic All-District 4 Team in 2023 and was named to the SEC Spring Academic Honor Roll twice (2022-23)

*** This information was acquired from a recent press release from Alabama Athletics. 

Not a member, Alabama fans? Join BamaOnLine!

Have you subscribed to BamaOnLine.com yet? You can sign up now for a year’s worth of premium access for 99! Or, you can also get monthly access for just $9.99. Get access to premium articles and nuggets covering Alabama sports and recruiting content and also join thousands of Crimson Tide fans on the BOL Round Table message board! CLICK HERE!