According to a release from K-State Athletics, K-State first baseman Jake Scudder (16th round), left-handed pitcher Parker Rigler (31st round) and catcher Josh Rolette (39th round) were each selected on final day of the Major League Baseball Draft Wednesday.
Scudder was selected by the Washington Nationals with the 493rd overall pick while Rigler was drafted 927th overall by the Chicago White Sox and Rolette was chosen by the Cleveland Indians with the 1,182nd overall pick. Scudder and Rigler each completed their senior seasons at K-State while Rolette finished his sophomore season with the Wildcats.
Scudder, a former transfer from Iowa Western Community College, led K-State in home runs (13) and runs batted in (62) for the second straight season and finished the regular season second in the Big 12 in both categories. His home run and RBI totals during his senior season are the highest by a Wildcat since 2010 (Carter Jurica) and is the first player to lead the Cats in homers in consecutive seasons since 2002-03.
In 2016, the Rock Island, Illinois, product became the program’s first player to be named Big 12 Newcomer of the Year following his junior season in which he led K-State in all three Triple Crown categories – .333 average, seven home runs, 45 RBI.
In his senior season, he was voted Second Team All-Big 12 for the second consecutive season after registering a slash line of .294/.387/.536. His .536 slugging percentage led the team and was in the Big 12’s top 10 at the end of the regular season.
Rigler, a former Cowley College transfer, made K-State history by throwing the ninth no-hitter in program history, and first since 1991, in a 14-0 victory over Eastern Illinois on March 5. Following his monumental effort, he was named National Pitcher of the Week by Collegiate Baseball and the NCBWA along with Big 12 Pitcher of the Week accolades.
In two seasons with the Wildcats, the Edmond, Oklahoma, native compiled an 8-13 record with a 4.28 ERA and 124 strikeouts in 30 starts. In his senior season, the southpaw was 4-4 with a 3.67 ERA in 14 starts and led the Cats with 51 strikeouts while holding opponents to a .246 average.
In 2016, Rolette was named Freshman All-America by Collegiate Baseball newspaper following his freshman season in which he hit .290 with six home runs and 34 RBI. Primarily playing catcher in his sophomore season, Rolette hit a career-best seven home runs while driving in 26 runs and posting a .372 on-base percentage.
The Shawnee, Oklahoma, native was selected by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 18th round of the 2015 MLB First-Year Player Draft but elected not to sign and attend K-State.
Scudder becomes the third Wildcat to be selected by Washington and first since 2009. Rigler is the sixth player from K-State taken by the White Sox and Rolette is the eighth Wildcat drafted by Cleveland.
The trio join senior left-hander Jordan Floyd who was drafted Tuesday by the Kansas City Royals in the 10th round, marking the 14th consecutive season under head coach Brad Hill in which K-State has had multiple players selected in the Draft. Hill, K-State’s all-time wins leader, has now coached 45 MLB selections in his 14 seasons at K-State.
