HURRICANE, W.Va. — Hurricane shortstop Trey Dawson became the only West Virginia high school senior selected as the 40-round Major League Baseball Draft concluded on Wednesday evening.
“It doesn’t matter what round it is,” Dawson said. “It’s pretty cool to get drafted.”
The Tigers chose Dawson in the 32nd round as the overall 970th pick with the understanding that he would be keeping his commitment to play for LSU next season after signing with the Tigers in the fall.
“They understood (I would be sticking with LSU),” Dawson said. “One of their guys called me after they selected me and congratulated me. He said they understood that I had already made my decision to go to college. It was just a sign that they liked me and will still keep watching me at LSU. I’m very blessed and fortunate that they did that.”
Dawson received an email on Tuesday morning from a major league team before the third round began, inquiring where his salary number would be before he would sign a professional deal. The numbers ultimately weren’t the right fit to surpass his college career.
“I talked it over with my family and we just felt like college was the best route from that perspective on,” he said. “Still, whether it’s from now or in three years after college, to hear my name called in the draft is something I will never forget.”
Dawson was one of three Division I baseball signees in his senior class with Hurricane, which won the 2014 Class AAA state championship and fell just short of the state tournament this past season.
He hit .404 during his senior year and went 7-1 on the mound with a 2.05 ERA. Defensively, he had just three errors in 100 chances.
“There’s not one regret that I have about Hurricane High School,” Dawson said. “All of those coaches have been the best for me and I’ll never forget them, along with all of my friends that I’ve made, whether that’s in sports or not in sports.”
Looking ahead to Baton Rouge, LSU shortstop Alex Bregman was selected as the overall No. 2 pick to the Astros, opening up a spot at the position for next season.
“I’m not saying I will get the job, but I will do everything in my power to try to get the job,” he said. “They told me they have big expectations for me to come in and be a big impact on the team, and I’m looking forward to it.”
Another former Hurricane standout, Tyler Payne, was selected in the 30th round by the Chicago Cubs after finishing his senior season with West Virginia State. Payne was the 893rd overall pick.
“I actually just worked out with him down at the field,” Dawson said. “He’s a great guy, he’s going to do great with them and I can’t wait to see what he does.”
Former Nitro standout Korey Dunbar, a junior catcher with North Carolina, was selected in the 20th round by Miami as the 596th pick.
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