St. John’s baseball has a record-tying MLB draft class

The end of the season wasn’t kind to the St. John’s Red Storm squad on the diamond, as they lost on the first weekend of the NCAA baseball tournament. But Ed Blankmeyer’s decorated and talented 40-17 team was prominently featured in the MLB Draft, as six of the squads standouts heard their names called by Major League Baseball teams.

With a tally of six picks in the MLB Draft, St. John’s ties the mark set by both the 2005 and 2015 teams.

The players who heard their names called in the draft were: Kevin Magee, Michael LoPresti, Josh Shaw, John Valente, Jamie Galazin, and Robert Boselli III. Congratulations to the players

Kevin Magee

Magee was the first from the St. John’s ballclub to hear his name called — in the 9th round of the 2018 MLB Draft by the Baltimore Orioles (265th overall). In 2018, the left-hander compiled a 7-3 record on the mound, in 15 appearances (14 starts).

Magee finished the year with a 2.67 ERA, while also holding batters to a .249 batting average. Magee displayed excellent command, with a strikeout-to-walks ratio of 6.13, ranking him 24th in the nation.

Magee was prepared if he did not hear his name, however. After finishing with a degree in Homeland Security, Magee was close to getting a job protecting the country with the federal Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and was looking at work with Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as a backup.

Michael LoPresti

LoPresti was drafted in the 18th round, 534th overall, by the Pittsburg Pirates. The right handed pitcher finished the 2018 season with a 4-3 record, and an ERA of 3.16. Overall, LoPresti finished with a record of 13-4 over his 3 seasons with the Johnnies, starting 24 of 44 appearances.

LoPresti was one of 11 pitchers picked by the Pirates on their final day of selection.

Josh Shaw

The 6’1” second baseman was selected in the 19th round, 573rd overall, by the St. Louis Cardinals. Shaw played in every game of his three season career with the Johnnies, amassing 167 consecutive starts. In 2018, Shaw finished the season with 46 RBI, and had a batting average of .316.

Coming off of his 2016 Big East Freshman of the Year award, Shaw proved to be a consistent contributor, only committing 17 errors over his three years at second base. Shaw was listed as St. John’s top MLB prospect per Baseball America before the draft — sound fundamentally with potential for power.

Wendell Cruz

John Valente

This season’s Big East Player of the Year, Valente was selected in the 21st round, 615th overall, by the Detroit Tigers.

Over 4 years, Valente hit .353, was a part of two Big East Championships, and three 40 win seasons. Valente also struck out just 38 times in 173 appearances. In his 2018 season he drove in 40 runs, and hit 5 home runs.

Jamie Galazin

Galazin was selected in the 22nd round, 668th overall, by the Chicago Cubs. The four-year Johnnie, finished 2018 with career best statistics in:

• batting average (.329),
• RBI (44),
• home runs (6),
• and slugging percentage (.521)

Gallatin was a part of two Big East Championship teams, and thee 40 win seasons. Glazin came to St. John’s as a shortstop and pitcher (along with soccer player) in high school. This year, the 6’4” outfielder recorded 11 steals to tie the teal lead with John Valente. (His career-high was 14 as a sophomore.)

Robert Boselli III

Boselli was selected in the 37th round, 1,099th overall, by the Cincinnati Reds — where Amir Garrett is pitching solid innings in relief on the major league level. In his two seasons with the Johnnies, the 6’3”, 240 pound catcher Boselli batted .275, and drove in 48 runs.