Three more players with Arkansas ties were taken Tuesday on the second day of major-league baseball's amateur draft.
Arkansas Razorbacks pitcher Trey Killian was taken in the ninth round by the Colorado Rockies, while West Memphis High School senior pitcher Gray Fenter was selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the seventh round and the Kansas City Royals grabbed Arkansas-Pine Bluff pitcher Andre Davis in the eighth round.
Killian, a junior who played for Mountain Home High School, was selected by the Rockies with the second pick of the ninth round and was the 257th selection overall. He was listed as the No. 315 prospect by Baseball America.
The 6-3, 190-pound right-hander missed the beginning of the season because of tendinitis in his throwing elbow, but he has been the Razorbacks' No. 1 starter since his return and will take the mound Saturday afternoon when Arkansas opens play in the College World Series against Virginia in Omaha, Neb.
Killian is 3-4 with a 4.74 ERA after posting the victory in Arkansas' 18-4 super regional opener against Missouri State on Friday
"I can't say I never thought about the draft," Killian said Tuesday prior to being drafted. "But the biggest thing for me right now in my baseball career is the Arkansas Razorbacks going to the College World Series."
Killian had a 4-9 record and 2.30 ERA as a sophomore and led the SEC with 4 complete games after going 3-3 his freshman season.
He is the second Razorbacks player taken so far in the draft, joining Andrew Benintendi, who was selected seventh overall Monday by the Boston Red Sox.
Fenter, a 6-1, 200-pound right-hander, was the No. 223 overall pick and was the eighth player and fourth pitcher selected by the Orioles. He was considered the No. 134 prospect by Baseball America.
The Mississippi State signee has a fastball that has been clocked consistently at 90-93 mph with an 82-84 mph curve that is considered by scouts as a plus secondary pitch.
"Fenter was a surprise for us in the seventh round," said Gary Rajsich, the Orioles' scouting director. "We realized, talking to their advisers, that we were going to have the funds to do it.
"It's a big arm for us. Maybe a top-of-the-draft, first day-type talent that we were able to get in the seventh round, so we were very excited about that."
Baltimore drafted two players with Arkansas ties in 2014. Shortstop Austin Pfeiffer of Arkansas-Little Rock was a 27th round selection and right-handed pitcher Keegan Ghidotti of Ouachita Baptist was selected in the 38th round.
Fenter became the first high school player to be drafted by the Orioles since Mark Reyes of Jessieville was selected in the 46th round of the 2011 draft.
Kansas City took Davis, a left-hander, with the 249th overall pick. UAPB Coach Carlos James said it is the highest a Golden Lions player has been selected since the program was reinstated and joined NCAA Division I in 1998.
Davis, 6-6, 225, went 2-2 with a 2.28 ERA and 35 strikeouts in 27 2/3 innings this season and was a first-team All-Southwestern Athletic Conference player as a first baseman. He hit .364 with 6 home runs, 39 RBI and 34 runs scored.
James said Davis projects as a relief pitcher in the Royals' system and has a fastball that is consistently clocked at 93-95 mph and tops out at 98. James said Davis developed a slider this season but mostly relied on a fastball while closing out victories at Mississippi State and Kansas.
"If there was anything close to a sure thing late in a game, it was him," James said.
Major-league teams have until July 17 to negotiate contracts with draft picks. The draft concludes today with rounds 11 through 40.
Sports on 06/10/2015