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Mississippi State junior pitcher Dakota Hudson was selected 34th overall to the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1st round of today's MLB Draft.
So far on the 2016 campaign, Hudson has a 2.62 ERA with a 9-4 record in 16 appearances, all of which starts. In 106.2 innings, he's struck out a team high 109 batters and has an opposing batting average of .246.
Also, Hudson has been named 1st team All-America by Collegiate Baseball, 2nd team All-America by Baseball America, and a semi-finalist for the Golden Spikes Award.
Hudson is the 13th 1st round draft pick in Mississippi State history since the inception of the modern draft era in 1965, joining these legendary Bulldogs:
- Del Unser: 16th overall to the Washington Seantors, 1966
- Rafael Palmerio: 22nd overall to the Chicago Cubs, 1985
- Will Clark: 2nd overall to the San Francisco Giants, 1985
- B.J. Wallace: 3rd overall to the Montreal Expos, 1992
- Jay Powell: 19th overall to the Baltimore Orioles, 1993
- Carlton Loewer: 23rd overall to the Philadelphia Phillies, 1994
- Eric Dubose: 21st overall to the Baltimore Orioles, 1997
- Matt Ginter: 22nd to the New York Mets, 1999
- Paul Maholm: 8th overall to the Pittsburgh Pirates, 2003
- Ed Easley: 61st overall (supplemental draft) to the Arizona Diamondbacks, 2007
- Chris Stratton: 20th overall to the San Francisco Giants, 2012
- Hunter Renfroe: 13th overall to the San Diego Padres, 2013
Hudson is the 3rd Bulldog drafted in the 1st round during John Cohen's tenure at Mississippi State, joining Stratton and Renfroe.
Congratulations to Dakota Hudson and good luck with his future endeavors in the professional ranks! We'll keep you updated on other Bulldog draftees throughout the Draft.