Four Aztecs Selected in MLB First-Year Player Draft

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Written by San Diego Newscape San Diego Newscape
Category: Sports News Sports News
Published: 06 June 2019 06 June 2019

New York - Four players from the San Diego State baseball team were selected in the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft on Wednesday. Junior right-handed pitcher Logan Boyer (11th round, Los Angeles Dodgers), junior outfielder Julian Escobedo (17th round, Cleveland Indians), junior right-handed pitcher Adrian Mardueno (20th round, St. Louis Cardinals) and senior shortstop Angelo Armenta (38th round, Tampa Bay Rays) were all selected on the final day of the draft.

SDSU now stands at 219 MLB draft picks in program history, including 21 since over the last five years. The Aztecs four selections are the second most in the Mountain West, trailing only Fresno State's eight.

Boyer, a Chandler, Ariz. product from Hamilton HS, has started each of the last two seasons as SDSU's opening day starter. Boyer has had both his sophomore and junior seasons limited due to injury, however, when healthy Boyer has been a dominant force of the Aztec pitching staff having struck out 49 batters in 32.2 innings over the last two seasons. Over Boyer's Aztec career, he's limited opposing hitters to a .178 batting average. 

Escobedo has played in 159 career games with 139 starts for SDSU and most notably was a 2018 All-Mountain West Second Team honoree. Escobedo's sophomore campaign featured a .318 batting average with 37 walks against just 30 strikeouts. In 2019, Escobedo showcased his power-hitting and ability to drive runs in with a career-best five home runs and 32 RBIs.

Mardueno was one of college baseball's most dominant relief pitchers in 2019 and earned All-Mountain West First Team honors with a 5-2 record and 1.93 earned run average. Mardueno, who led the Aztecs for three consecutive seasons in inherited runners stranded percentage, became the first player since 2014 to lead the Mountain West in both ERA and opponent batting average (.196). Mardueno owns a 13-4 record over his Aztec career and his 1.93 ERA in 2019 stands as the 14th best in Aztec history (minimum 50 IP).  

Armenta, an All-Mountain West Second Team selection with the Aztecs in 2019 after four years at USC, started all 57 games at shortstop for SDSU this season. At the plate, Armenta hit .307 and led the team with 15 doubles and 39 RBIs while defensively, Armenta was a part of 51 double plays helping SDSU to their nation-leading total of 71.