Two Valley League alums were taken in the first round of the 2023 MLB Draft, with Florida outfielder Rhett Langford going fourth overall to the Texas Rangers, and Wake Forest righthander Rhett Lowder going seventh to the Cincinnati Reds.
The VBL hadn’t had a first-round pick since 2017. That guy was Nate Pearson, who threw five innings in one appearance with Staunton in 2016, and was the 28th pick of the Blue Jays the next summer.
Pearson is 5-1 with a 3.69 ERA with Toronto this season.
Langford played for Charlottesville in 2021, slashing .346/.459/.527 with a .986 OPS, three homers and 20 RBIs in 135 plate appearances that summer.
Langford came into his own the next two seasons, belting 47 homers with a slash line of .363/.471/.746, and an OPS of 1.217.
Lowder played for Strasburg in 2021, going 2-0 with a 2.37 ERA and 0.58 WHIP in four starts, striking out 27 and walking two in 19 innings.
As a junior at Wake in 2023, Lowder was (gulp!) 15-0 with a 1.87 ERA and 0.95 WHIP, with 143 Ks and 24 walks in 120.1 innings.
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Chris Graham
