2022 MLB Draft: Bolles graduate Hunter Barco leads Northeast Florida baseball pick list
Bolles School graduate Hunter Barco led a list of six selections from the Jacksonville area at the 2022 Major League Baseball Draft.
The Pittsburgh Pirates selected the left-handed pitcher from the University of Florida with the 44th overall pick in the second round, in spite of an arm injury that is expected to delay his professional debut.
In his third year at Florida, Barco twice won the Times-Union's All-First Coast player of the year award and led Bolles to a pair of Florida High School Athletic Association state championships. The Times-Union selected him as the No. 1 player on its team of the decade for baseball for 2010-19.
Barco was viewed as a potential first-round pick earlier in the spring before an elbow injury forced him to undergo Tommy John surgery. That procedure ended his 2022 season with Florida, where he had recorded a 5-2 record, 2.50 ERA and 69 strikeouts on the year. Rehabilitation from the operation is expected to keep him out of action for a portion of 2023 as well.
How they fared: Jacksonville-area players in 2022 NCAA Division I college baseball
Meet the team: All-First Coast 2022 high school baseball for Northeast Florida
Jacksonville University had a pair of selections, both pitchers: The San Francisco Giants picked closer Tyler Vogel in the 12th round at No. 376, and in the following round, the Chicago White Sox took starter Mason Adams at No. 401.
The Arizona Diamondbacks selected Fletcher's Malachi Witherspoon in Wednesday's 12th round, with the 348th pick overall. Witherspoon, who had previously signed with JU, now faces the choice whether to continue on with the Dolphins into college baseball or to take the offer of the National League West club and begin his professional career in the minor leagues.
Also chosen were Louisiana-Lafayette pitcher Bo Bonds, a Suwannee High School graduate, to the Toronto Blue Jays at No. 398 in the 13th round, as well as Georgia closer Jack Gowen, a Charlton County High School graduate, who went to the Miami Marlins at No. 592 in the 20th round.
Among those not selected were high-ranked St. Johns Country Day prospects Jordan Taylor and Bradley Hodges, both of them rated inside the top 200 prior to the draft. Taylor and Hodges are expected to continue their baseball careers in college, at Florida State and Virginia, respectively.
Clayton Freeman covers high school sports and more for the Florida Times-Union. Follow him on Twitter at @CFreemanJAX.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Baseball: Hunter Barco leads Jacksonville-area selections in 2022 MLB Draft
