Check out Travis Ott.
Just turned 18 on 6/29
Today: 5 IP 3 hits 1 run 0 bb 7 Ks
He's on the incredible GCL team.
Odd. You don't see guys drafted out of HS in the 25th round sign very often. Wonder why he slipped so far.
Shippensburg High School pitcher Travis Ott will get the opportunity to play professional baseball after all.
With the final pick of the 25th round on Saturday, the Washington Nationals drafted the Hounds' hot-armed lefty.
Before becoming the 766th overall pick in the 2013 MLB Draft, Ott finished his senior campaign with a 5-2 mark with a 1.82 ERA. He also struck out a school record 112, just shy of two strikeouts per innings pitched.
En route came a perfect game against Greencastle-Antrim, a no-hitter against Red Lion and a one-hit, 17-strikeout performance against Big Spring.
Ott worked out for the Nationals on Monday, impressing the scouts with a first-pitch fastball that hit 89 mph, according to Greyhounds skipper Dan Watkins. Ott later topped out in the low-90s, enough to satisfy Washington officials.
“He's very deserving of it and he did what they wanted to see,” said Watkins.
“Some had questioned his velocity but his first pitch at the workout was 89. They needed to see that he was an upper-80's kid. What he's done for us is just tremendous. He was never a kid that wanted to go to college, so this was really the route that needed to happen for him. I'm happy that he's going to get that chance.”
Epler on Twitter: @threejacker
