Dalton Rushing, Two Commits Drafted on Night One of MLB Draft

Dalton Rushing became the 95th Louisville Cardinal to be selected in the MLB Draft under the helm of Dan McDonnell as the 40th overall pick on Sunday night. Rushing, the eighth highest draft pick in the history of the program, continues a trend of Louisville catchers hearing their name called on draft night.

As the 40th pick, his slot value is $1,951,900. Cha-ching.

He will join former Cardinals Will Smith, Bobby Miller, and Devin Mann, who are all part of the Dodgers organization.

During his junior season, Rushing batted .310 with 23 home runs and 62 RBI while leading his team to a Super Regional appearance in College Station.

In the most recent episode of the 3rd and Central Podcast, Dalton joined Aaron and I as we talked about his time at Louisville and his outlook on the draft. As always, he delivered, giving insight on the Louisville program and dove into why he chose the Cards out of high school.

Give it a listen here:

As expected, Cam Collier (3B) was the first player selected with connections to the Louisville Baseball program. Collier, the son of Lou Collier, who spent 1997-2004 as a player in the MLB, was the highest ranked member of the Cardinals 2022 class.

Collier graduated high school early and enrolled at Chipola Junior College for one season prior to the draft. In his lone seasons at Chipola, he hit .333 with 8 home runs, and 47 RBI. Not too shabby for a kid that should have been in high school.

As the 18th overall selection by the Reds, his slot value is $3,659,800. That number can increase or decrease depending on how much Cincinnati thinks they can get him for. Either way, it is going to be one heck of a payday for Collier.

Many believe he has one of the most pure swings in the entire draft and at just 17 years old, he has plenty of time to grow into his body.

Congrats to Cam on his road to the big leagues, Card Nation will be cheering for you.

The third name we heard on Sunday night was Jacob Miller (RPH), who was selected 46th overall by the Miami Marlins. Miller, another member of the loaded recruiting class that was ranked 3rd overall by Perfect Game, is a name to remember as he climbs up the minor league ranks.

Miller on his fit tonight:

What could have been.

Pitching Coach, Roger Williams, would have loved to get him on campus, but with a sub-one ERA and fastball that tops around 98 MPH, he was destined to hear his name called during the first night of the draft.

He is set to make $1,700,400 based on his draft slot. Congrats to Jacob!

Stay tuned as the draft progresses over the next few days.