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COLUMBIA, Mo. – Five University of Missouri student-athletes were selected in the 2022 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. The five selections are the most for the Tigers since 2019.
Pitcher Spencer Miles was selected by the San Francisco Giants in the fourth round (Pick 136) on Monday afternoon, becoming the first Tiger off the board. On Tuesday, first baseman Torin Montgomery went to the Miami Marlins (Round 14, Pick 412), shortstop Josh Day to the Arizona Diamondbacks (Round 15, Pick 438), pitcher Nathan Landry to the Boston Red Sox (Round 15, Pick 459) and pitcher Drew Garrett to the Philadelphia Phillies (Round 19, Pick 572).
2022 marks the 27th consecutive season a Mizzou player has been chosen in the MLB Draft. The five selections are tied for the ninth-most in program history with draft records dating back to 1923. In six seasons under head coach Steve Bieser, 23 Tigers have heard their names called in the MLB Draft.
Miles joined a long history of Tiger pitchers in the draft, marking the 26th-straight year with a Mizzou arm going in the draft. He is the 10th Mizzou pitcher to be drafted under coach Bieser. Miles is the fifth Tiger pitcher to go in the first four rounds since 2017, joining Ian Bedell (2020), TJ Sikkema (2019), Michael Plassmeyer (2018) and Tanner Houck (2017).
The junior closed the 2022 season with a career performance at Georgia, working seven strong innings of two-run baseball while striking out a career-best 12. The outing marked a second-straight quality start to cap the season after Miles worked six innings of three-run ball against Florida. The right-hander led Mizzou with career-high 69.2 innings of work in 2022 and 67 strikeouts.
The first ?? is off the board??@spencerdmiles is headed to the show ??#MIZ | #C2E???? pic.twitter.com/NFtgxbkjtF
— Mizzou Baseball (@MizzouBaseball) July 18, 2022
Montgomery’s selection marked the second time the first baseman has been drafted by the Marlins after he was picked in the 35th round of the 2019 draft out of high school. The Tiger first baseman hit .365 this spring with a team-leading 49 RBI. A right-handed slugger, he hit seven home runs and 12 doubles while drawing 21 walks and 16 hit-by-pitches to reach at a .462 clip on the season. Over his two years at Mizzou, Montgomery has hit .322 with 21 doubles, 12 home runs and 79 RBI.
1B is headed to Miami ??#MIZ | #C2E???? pic.twitter.com/wVJwT3de2s
— Mizzou Baseball (@MizzouBaseball) July 19, 2022
Day became the second Mizzou position player taken in Tuesday’s draft action with his 15th round selection by the Diamondbacks. The shortstop was a force at the top of the Tigers order in 2022, batting .340 with 29 RBI. Day showed his power with seven home runs, 10 doubles and a triple. He also served as a stellar table-setter, reaching base at a .435 clip with 20 walks and 14 hit-by-pitches while scoring a team-leading 50 runs. One of Mizzou’s premier speed threats, Day swiped nine bags in 11 attempts last season. In two seasons at shortstop for the Tigers, Day hit .296 with 50 RBI and another 66 runs scored.
Bringin’ the heat to the desert ?? @iamjosh_5 is a Diamondback ?? #MIZ | #C2E???? pic.twitter.com/NHGc85vcYm
— Mizzou Baseball (@MizzouBaseball) July 19, 2022
Landry became the second Mizzou arm selected in the draft, going to the Red Sox in the 15th round. The southpaw enjoyed a breakout campaign in his first season at Mizzou, posting a 3.67 ERA in 41.2 innings. Landry became a go-to swing reliever for the Tigers, working to a 4-2 record on the year and an impeccable 54:7 strikeout-to-walk ratio. The Canadian limited opponents to just .200 hitting on the season. He closed the year with a dominant six innings of work at Georgia earning the win after striking out seven and allowing just two runs.
Boston picked a good one ??#MIZ | #C2E???? pic.twitter.com/OryZJ0apMR
— Mizzou Baseball (@MizzouBaseball) July 19, 2022
Garrett marked the third Mizzou pitcher selected and the second Columbia native to go when the Phillies picked the right-hander in the 19th round. The Hickman High School product began his career at Johnson County Community College where he posted a 4-1 record and 1.99 ERA in his 2020 sophomore season. At Mizzou, Garrett flashed his hard-throwing arsenal with 12 appearances out of the bullpen over his two seasons. He averaged a strikeout per inning over his two years in the black and gold.
For a second straight year, a ?? is headed to Philly @dgarrett107 is on his way ?? pic.twitter.com/7pCXJdakBW
— Mizzou Baseball (@MizzouBaseball) July 19, 2022
As players with remaining college eligibility, the five Tigers have until Aug. 1 to sign a contract with their respective MLB organizations.
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