MLB Draft: Virginia’s Adam Haseley drafted No. 8 overall to the Philadelphia Phillies

Two Virginia names were undoubtedly going to be called early in Monday night’s MLB Draft, as both Adam Haseley and Pavin Smith were both projected to be anywhere in the top 20. The only question was which would go first, and where. While that honor went to Pavin Smith at No. 7 to the Arizona Diamondbacks, Haseley was drafted not long after at No. 8 by the Philadelphia Phillies.

The draft this year is all about two-way players, at least at the very top. Both the top college player and the top prep player are two-way players who have discussed the possibility of both hitting and pitching in the pros. (There is also Japanese phenom Shohei Otani, who plays both ways in Japan and is expected to come over to the US in the next year or so.)

That said, even though Adam Haseley was a two-way player for the Hoos, nobody expects him to pitch in the pros — not that he isn’t capable. After all, Haseley was the Hoos best pitcher for the past 2 years. For his career, he went 18-5 with a 2.51 ERA in 172 innings.

But Haseley’s future is as an everyday player. Haseley played CF for the Hoos almost exclusively this year (aside from pitching) and projects as a plus CF in the pros. He’s 6’1” 195 and runs well (18 career steals) and has a very strong arm, which of course isn’t surprising for a pitcher.

The real reason Haseley’s future isn’t on the mound is because of his promise at the plate. Haseley is a career .310 hitter and has hit 21 HRs for his career. This year, in particular, Haseley was a beast at the plate. He batted .390 with a .491 OBP and hit a team high 14 HRs. For his efforts, Haseley was named First-Team All American as an OF by Baseball America and Second-Team All American by Collegiate Baseball (as a utility player). He was also named First-Team All-ACC.

With both Haseley and Smith being drafted in the first round, the Cavaliers have had multiple players drafted in the first round twice in four years. UVa had three drafted in the first round of the 2014 draft (Nick Howard, Derek Fisher, and Mike Papi). As Damon Dillman pointed out on twitter, with both being drafted in the Top 10 picks, UVa became the first team since Oklahoma State in 1988 to have two position players taken in the top 10