2022 MLB Draft | Louisville Baseball Recap

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The 2022 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft is now officially in the books. Although it the Collective Bargaining Agreement enacted in March permanently shortened the draft from 40 to 20 rounds long, the draft still had a heavy Louisville presence.

In total, five University of Louisville baseball players were drafted. The Cardinals also had an additional five Class of 2022 commits get selected.

Below is a list of every player who was taken in the draft. All draftees have until August 1st to sign their tender:

Cam Collier

Selection: No. 18 overall, 1st round
Team: Cincinnati Reds
Position: Third Baseman

Collier was the first prospect with Louisville ties to come off the board, as expected. He is the highest-rated prospect in Louisville's 2022 recruiting class, coming in as the No. 6 high school player in the nation according to Perfect Game.

Not only did he reclassify from the 2023 cycle to 2022, he graduated from high school early and spent this past season in the JUCO ranks with Chipola College. During what would have been his senior year in HS, he hit .333 with eight home runs and 47 RBI in 52 games with Chipola.

Dalton Rushing

Selection: No. 40 overall, 2nd round
Team: Los Angeles Dodgers
Position: Catcher

Rushing barely missed out on being a first round selection, getting picked with the very first pick of the second round. That being said, he still became the eighth-highest draft selection in the history of the Louisville baseball program.

He turned in one of the best power-hitting seasons in program history, posting a .310/.470/.686 slash line along with 23 home runs, 62 RBIs, 16 doubles and 50 walks. He came just two homers short of tying Louisville's single-season home run record, set by Chris Dominguez in 2009.

Jacob Miller

Selection: No. 46 overall, 2nd round
Team: Miami Marlins
Position: Catcher

Collier was not the first Louisville commit to get selected on Day One of the draft, with Miller following right behind him. Ranked as the No. 26 high school prospect in the nation according to Perfect Game, his selection marked the first time since 2018 that Louisville had two commits drafted in the first 50 picks (Jarred Kelenic, Nick Schnell).

It's not hard to see why Miller was drafted so high, considering he had a phenomenal senior season for Baltimore (Oh.) Liberty Union. Sporting a fastball that sits in the 96-98 mph range, as well as an above-average curveball and slider, he posted an ERA of just 0.35 along with 94 strikeouts in 40.0 innings pitched.

Jared Poland

Selection: No. 172 overall, 6th round
Team: Miami Marlins
Position: Right-Handed Pitcher

Despite initially not being tabbed a top 250 prospect by either Baseball America or MLB.com, Poland saw his draft stock take a near-meteoric rise, and wound up becoming the second Louisville player to come off the board.

A former two-way player, he became Louisville's ace pitcher 2022, tossing a team-best 103 strikeouts to 32 walks with an ERA of 3.46 in 83.1 innings pitched. Seven of his 15 starts were quality starts, and his tossed seven or more strikeouts eight times, including a career-best 13 vs. Clemson.

Michael Prosecky

Selection: No. 176 overall, 6th round
Team: Colorado Rockies
Position: Left-Handed Pitcher

After Poland was selected, we didn't have to wait long to see another Cardinal drafted, with Prosecky coming just four picks later. He was able to overcome and injury-riddled 2020 campaign to become one of the best closers in the ACC.

In 26 relief appearances and 37.1 innings pitched, he posted an ERA of 3.38 with 44 strikeouts to 22 walks. He allowed an earned run in just nine of his 26 outings, and his 11 saves was not only second-best in the conference, but was good for seventh-most in a single season in Louisville history.

Logan Wagner

Selection: No. 195 overall, 6th round
Team: Los Angeles Dodgers
Position: Shortstop

Ranking as the No. 123 high school prospect in the nation, and Louisville's sixth-highest ranked prospect in the class, it was Wagner who would be the next Cardinals commit off the board. His selection marked the first time that UofL has ever had three committed prospects chosen in the first six rounds of the draft.

Ben Metzinger

Selection: No. 222 overall, 7th round
Team: Milwaukee Brewers
Position: Third Baseman

Metzinger was another Louisville player who saw his draft stock rise tremendously over the last few weeks, due largely to his play in the postseason. In seven NCAA Tournament games this season, he hit 13-32 (.406) with two homers, seven RBI, three doubles and five walks.

For the year, he put up a slash line of .312/.427/.591 with 19 home runs, and led the team with 69 RBIs, 51 walks and 159 total bases. He ranked in the top 15 in the ACC in walks, hits (84), home runs, RBIs and total bases, and his walk total was good for 10th-most in a single season in Louisville history.

Levi Usher

Selection: No. 295 overall, 10th round
Team: Kansas City Royals
Position: Center Fielder

Usher was the final Louisville player to be drafted this year. His selection marked the fifth time in program history that Louisville had at least five players selected in the first 10 rounds of a single draft. The 2017 and 2019 drafts also had five, 2021 featured six and 2016 has the record at seven.

Usher was one of the top base-stealers and defensive center fielders in college baseball last season. His 36 stolen bases was not only ranked eighth nationally, but also good for sixth-most in a single season in Louisville history. He was also tabbed as the ACC Defensive Player of the Year and a winner of the ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove. He finished the year hitting .285/.376/.424 with seven home runs, 49 RBIs, 15 doubles, three triples and 25 walks.

Gavin Kilen

Selection: No. 399 overall, 13th round
Team: Boston Red Sox
Position: Shortstop

While Louisville had no players taken on Day Three of this year's draft, Kilen was the first of two high school commits taken. He is Louisville's third-highest ranked commit in the 2022 class, and ranks No. 55 overall according to Perfect Game. Kilen was Baseball America's No. 149 prospect in the draft, but a firm college commitment caused him to slide. It's almost certain he winds up in Louisville, unless Boston offers him a lot more than his slot value is worth.

Korbyn Dickerson

Selection: No. 594 overall, 20th round
Team: Minnesota Twins
Position: Center Fielder

Dickerson saw a massive slide in the draft. Ranked as the No. 71 high school prospect and No. 188 draft prospect, he was 22 picks away from going undrafted. That being said, he became the fifth Louisville high school commit to get drafted, setting a new program record.

It's very unlikely that the local prospect signs with the Twins, which is great news for the Cardinals. In his senior season for Trinity, he hit .481 with 57 RBI, 11 home runs and 54 runs scored.

(Photo of Dalton Rushing: Jared Anderson - Louisville Report)

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