NEW YORK -- After 40 rounds and three days, 15 players from BIG EAST member schools were selected in the 2017 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. BIG EAST tournament champion Xavier led the league with four players selected in the draft. Regular season and tournament runner up St. John’s had three players picked, as did BIG EAST regular season champion Creighton and Seton Hall. Villanova had two players drafted.
The highest pick for a BIG EAST school went to the Xavier’s Zac Lowther, who went 74th overall, (second compensatory round) to the Baltimore Orioles. He is the highest draft pick for Xavier and the highest draft pick for the conference since realignment to seven teams in 2014. Xavier’s four picks were a program record.
The 32nd pitcher taken in the draft, Lowther was the 20th college pitcher taken and the eighth lefty selected by an MLB team. Lowther has been one of the top strikeout artists at the NCAA Division I level all season long. After leading the prestigious Cape Cod League in strikeouts last summer, Lowther has been mentioned as the top MLB Draft prospect in the BIG EAST all season long.
Four additional players were taken in the first 10 rounds.
Seton Hall righty pitcher Zach Schellenger went in the sixth round, 191st overall, to the Boston Red Sox. A hard-throwing right-hander with a lethal slider, Schellenger has been a force on the mound for the Pirates since his arrival in 2014. As a senior, Schellenger made 10 appearances and posted a career-best 2.08 earned run average. Opponents hit only .156 against him and he struck out 23 batters in 13.0 innings pitched.
Villanova ace Hunter Schryver went in the seventh round to the Tampa Bay Rays (199 overall). Schryver was a first team All-BIG EAST selection each of the last two seasons and was named this year’s BIG EAST Preseason Pitcher of the Year in a vote of league head coaches prior to the start of his senior season. He made 12 starts during the 2017 campaign and limited opponents to a .213 batting average against him while striking out 91 batters in 73 2/3 innings (11.1 strikeouts/nine innings).
BIG EAST Player of the Year Rylan Bannon was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the eighth round, 250th overall. The third baseman finished the 2017 season with a .339 batting average, 15 homers, 50 RBI and a BIG EAST-leading .633 slugging percentage. Bannon's 15 homers were tied for third-most in a single season in XU program history.
In the 10th round, St. John’s junior shortstop Jesse Berardi was selected 312th by the Cleveland Indians. Berardi enjoyed a breakout year as a junior, batting a career-best .356 with a team-high 47 RBIs. The Commack, N.Y., native, who registered a .456 on-base percentage on the campaign, reached base in his final 37 games of the season and compiled a 19-game hitting streak during that stretch.2017 marks the second time that Berardi has heard his name called in the MLB Draft, as he earned a 40th Round selection from the Philadelphia Phillies in 2014 after taking home the Carl Yastrzemski Award as Suffolk County's Top Player and Newsday's Long Island Player of the Year Award.
In round 11, Creighton righty Rollie Lacy heard his name called by the Chicago Cubs, 345th overall. In the 12th round, teammate Keith Rogalla was selected 355th overall by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The Bluejays had a third pitcher selected in the 2017 draft as David Gerber went in round 29 to the Seattle Mariners (873).
Three BIG EAST pitchers were picked up in round 18: Xavier’s Garrett Schilling and Seton Hall’s Shane McCarthy and Chris Morris. Schilling went to the Colorado Rockies at 536th. McCarthy was picked up by the St. Louis Cardinals with the 544th selection and Morris went to the Texas Rangers (554).
In round 20, St. John’s catcher Troy Dixon went to the Seattle Mariners (603). Xavier’s fourth and final player drafted, Greg Jacknewitz was selected by the San Fransisco Giants (666).
Villanova second baseman Todd Czinege went in the 29th round to the Rockies (866) and St. John’s outfielder Michael Donadio, a four-time All-BIG EAST First Team honoree, was picked up by the Miami Marlins to finish up the 2017 First-Year Players Draft for the BIG EAST.
In the past three seasons, 36 BIG EAST players have been selected in the First-Year Player Draft.
BIG EAST Players in 2017 MLB First-Year Player Draft
| Round (Overall Pick) |
Player, School, Yr., Pos. |
Team |
| CBB (74) |
Zac Lowther, Xavier, Jr., LHP |
Baltimore Orioles |
| 6 (191) |
Zach Schellenger, Seton Hall, Jr., RHP |
Boston Red Sox |
| 7 (199) |
Hunter Schryver, Villanova, Sr., LHP |
Tampa Bay Rays |
| 8 (250) |
Rylan Bannon, Xavier, Jr., 3B |
Los Angeles Dodgers |
| 10 (312) |
Jesse Berardi, St. John’s, Jr., SS |
Cleveland Indians |
| 11 (345) |
Rollie Lacy, Creighton, Jr., RHP |
Chicago Cubs |
| 12 (355) |
Keith Rogalla, Creighton, Jr., RHP |
Los Angeles Angels |
| 18 (536) |
Garrett Schilling, Xavier, Jr., RHP |
Colorado Rockies |
| 18 (544) |
Shane McCarthy, Seton Hall, Jr., RHP |
St. Louis Cardinals |
| 18 (554) |
Chris Morris, Seton Hall, Jr., RHP |
Texas Rangers |
| 20 (603) |
Troy Dixon, St. John’s, Sr., C |
Seattle Mariners |
| 22 (666) |
Greg Jacknewitz, Xavier, Sr., LHP |
San Francisco Giants |
| 29 (866) |
Todd Czinege, Villanova, Jr., 2B |
Colorado Rockies |
| 29 (873) |
David Gerber, Creighton, Jr., RHP |
Seattle Mariners |
| 30 (899) |
Michael Donadio, St. John’s, Sr., LF |
Miami Marlins |