Milwaukee Brewers select Alex Binelas in Third Round of 2021 MLB Draft
(Photo of Alex Binelas: Matt Stone - Courier Journal via Imagn Content Services, LLC)
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Louisville corner infielder Alex Binelas is heading home, as he has been selected by the Milwaukee Brewers with the No. 86 overall pick in the third round of the 2021 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.
In head coach Dan McDonnell's 15-year tenure as the head coach of the Cardinals, the Oak Creek, Wisc. native is Louisville's 89th MLB Draft selection, and the 31st in the first five rounds. He is also the second Cardinal to be selected in this year's draft, following catcher Henry Davis' selection by the Pittsburgh Pirates with the No. 1 overall pick.
Despite a slow start to the 2021 season, Binelas was blazing hot down the stretch, hitting .314 with 18 home runs and 52 RBIs over the final 32 games of the year. In the ACC Tournament, he had a four-hit, three-home run game against Clemson, then an extra innings go-ahead homer against Georgia Tech. He finished the season with a .256 batting average, 19 homers and 63 RBIs, being named to the All-ACC Second Team.
Binelas burst onto the scene during his freshman year in 2019. He hit .291 with 14 homers and 59 RBIs, becoming the first Louisville freshman to hit 10 home runs in a season since Chris Dominguez in 2007. He named a Freshman All-American by Baseball America, D1Baseball and others, and made the All-ACC Second Team. He played just two games in the shortened 2020 season before breaking his hamate bone.
Should he sign with the Brewers, the 86th overall pick has a slot value of $699,700, and he has until Aug. 1 to sign. He would finish his Louisville career with a .272/.363/.608 slash line, 33 home runs, 123 RBIs, 24 doubles, seven triples and 48 walks in 111 games and 106 starts.
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