Chase Silseth spent two days hoping to hear his name called.
The Los Angeles Angels made sure Tuesday’s wait was a short one.
The Angels took Silseth, the ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ Wildcats’ right-handed ace, with their 11th-round pick (321st overall) in the third and final day of baseball’s amateur draft. Tuesday’s selections started at 9 a.m.; by 9:30, Silseth — who helped pitch the Wildcats to the College World Series a month ago — was off the board. It was a landmark draft for the Angels, who selected a record 20 pitchers in as many rounds.
Seven Wildcats, one ex-Wildcat and a UA recruit were taken during the three-day, 20-round draft.
Silseth and two other Wildcats were drafted Tuesday: Second baseman Kobe Kato went to the Houston Astros in the 13th round, and right-handed pitcher Austin Smith was an 18th-round choice of the Atlanta Braves. All three players could opt to return to college to play for first-year coach Chip Hale if they’re unable to strike deals with their professional clubs.
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While the three-day draft mostly played out as expected for the Wildcats involved, there were a few surprises. Senior pitchers Preston Price and Vince Vannelle went unpicked, as did draft-eligible underclassmen Randy Abshier (pitcher), Mac Bingham (outfielder), Jacob Blas (shortstop), Tony Bullard (third baseman) and Tanner O’Tremba (outfielder).
The same went for two pitchers, right-hander Quinn Flanagan and left-hander Garrett Irvin, who entered the NCAA transfer portal following the departure of coach Jay Johnson to LSU.
Only one of ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥â€™s known signees, Las Vegas outfielder Tyler Whitaker, was taken early enough to put his college decision in serious jeopardy. The Astros took Whitaker with their third-round pick on Monday; his pick comes with a recommended slot value of $689,300.
The Angels’ selection stopped a surprising slide for Silseth, who was ranked as the 145th-best prospect in the draft by Baseball America and 157th by .
A New Mexico native who attended Tennessee and the College of Southern Nevada before transferring to the UA, Silseth went 8-1 with a 5.55 ERA in 2021; he averaged nearly 10 strikeouts per nine innings.
wrote before the draft that Silseth “has an intriguing mix of pitches that could give him a chance to start” in the pros.
Kato was drafted by Houston with the 388th overall pick. Baseball America was high on the Hawaiian-born Kato before the draft, ranking him as the 250th-best available player. In 2021, he hit .350 with 16 doubles and 34 RBIs. The left-handed-hitting Kato also walked more times (43) than he struck out (34), an advanced skill for a college player — and something that’s increasingly prized by pro clubs.
Infielder Kobe Kato hit .350 with a .460 on-base percentage in helping the Wildcats to the College World Series. Tuesday, the Houston Astros selected Kato with their 13th-round pick.
Smith, a Texan who spent the 2017-20 seasons at Southwestern University, went 2-1 with a 5.14 ERA in 18 UA appearances. The righty struck out 24 batters and walked 18.
Four other Wildcats — outfielder Ryan Holgate (Cardinals), first baseman Branden Boissiere (Nationals), outfielder Donta’ Williams (Orioles) and left-handed reliever Gil Luna (White Sox) — were all drafted Monday. Holgate went 70th overall, part of the competitive balance round, while Boissiere was a third-round selection, Williams went in the fourth and Luna, a Casa Grande native, went in the ninth. Former Wildcats infielder Dayton Dooney, now at Central ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥ College, was a sixth-round choice of the Royals.
