Kyle Teel and Jake Gelof selected early in the MLB Draft

A pair of Virginia Cavaliers baseball players heard their name called in the MLB Draft yesterday evening with catcher Kyle Teel joining the Boston Red Sox at pick #14 and third baseman Jake Gelof entering the Los Angeles Dodgers organization as the 60th overall selection. Both Teel and Gelof had stellar third seasons at UVA in 2023 which closed out record-setting careers that included a pair of trips to Omaha and the College World Series.

Teel was the 2023 ACC Player of the Year and also racked up plenty of additional national accolades in his last season in Charlottesville. He won the Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year Award and was a consensus First Team All-American, only the fifth in the history of the program.

At pick number 14, Teel was definitely a bit of a steal for the Red Sox. But, fortunately, he has a path to becoming a serious major leaguer in the organization with the opportunity to eventually seize the franchise’s starting catcher position.

Meanwhile, Gelof — UVA’s all-time home run leader — had to wait until the second round to discover his professional destination. Funnily enough, he was picked 60th overall two years after his brother and fellow Cavalier Zach Gelof went 60th in the draft to the Oakland Athletics.

Clearly, Gelof will bring his raw power as a hitter to LA. Where he’s likely to be tested is in the field. But, no matter what, the intrigue in his ability to knock the ball out of the park should be appealing enough to land him opportunities within the Dodgers organization.