Kentucky baseball’s Ryan Waldschmidt was selected with the No. 31 overall pick in the MLB Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday.
In being selected, Waldschmidt became the highest drafted Wildcat since Zack Thompson in 2017 when he was selected No. 19 overall by the St. Louis Cardinals.
Waldschmidt played three seasons in college with his first being at Charleston Southern before transferring to Lexington.
In 2023, Waldschmidt was a part of the Super Regional team for Kentucky where he posted a .290 batting average, .427 on-base percentage and a .445 slugging percentage.
During the 2023 summer, Waldschmidt tore his ACL, which hindered his full usage for the start of the 2024 season as he began the season in a pinch hitting role before moving to the designated hitter spot.
Once he was fully recovered, he returned to left field and remained there for the rest of the team’s season that ended in Omaha at the Men’s College World Series for the first time in program history.
Despite not being in the field at first, one thing that never changed for Waldschmidt was his hitting ability as he was one of the team’s premier hitters at the leadoff spot.
On the year he finished with a .333 batting average, .469 on-base percentage and a .610 slugging percentage.
Waldschmidt also showcased his ability to steal bases as he had 25 on the year, which only trailed Émilien Pitre, who posted 26.
One of the games where the first-rounder showed off his talent was against the rival Louisville Cardinals in a midweek matchup where he went 3-5 with two home runs, a double and six RBIs.
In his three collegiate seasons, Waldschmidt finished with a .312 batting average, .458 on-base percentage and a .538 slugging percentage.
After being a part of two of the most memorable seasons in Kentucky baseball history, Waldschmidt will now begin his journey through the minors leagues of the Diamondbacks, who’s Triple-A affiliate is the Reno Aces and Double-A affiliate is the Amarillo Sod Poodles.
