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Thursday, June 18, 2020
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
SPORTS

Rockies draft Blomgren

In the fourth round of the 

2020 MLB Draft Thursday, the 
Colorado Rockies selected junior 
shortstop Jack Blomgren with the 
140th overall pick.

The Rockies acquired a two-

way shortstop with a knack for 
getting on-base and dynamic 
infielding capabilities. Blomgren 
started almost as soon as his 
freshman campaign began and 
though he struggled offensively 
his freshman season, Blomgren’s 
career .276 batting average, .399 
on-base percentage, and .956 
fielding percentage signal the sort 
of consistency that professional 
teams seek in prospective captains 
of their infields.

Blomgren did not attract draft 

attention out of high school, but 
his characteristic work-ethic and 
competitive fire drove him to 
make the developments necessary 
to hear his name called in this 
year’s shortened draft.

“My mindset going into every 

at-bat is putting the team first 
and competing for my teammates 
behind me that are cheering 
me on,” Blomgren told The 

Daily during the 2020 season. 
“Everything I’ve put in, prepared 
for, is for the guys behind me, and 
that’s what’s so important for this 
whole team and for me especially.”

The 
fact 
that 
Blomgren 

speaks of setting up for the guys 
behind him makes sense given 
his tendency to hit singles, but 
his growing ability to drive in 
runs himself is perhaps his most 
interesting development during 
his time in Ann Arbor.

While Blomgren notched only 

13 extra-base hits in 2019, he drove 
in 47 runs, which put him only 17 
runs batted in behind the team’s 
leader Jimmy Kerr. Kerr accrued 
31 extra-base hits, but the lack of 
distance between the two players’ 
RBI 
numbers 
suggests 
that 

Blomgren can provide teams with 
clutch hits, a valuable commodity 
for MLB teams.

With Blomgren’s timely hitting 

and 
stellar 
defense 
harking 

back to age-old pillars of a good 
baseball player, combined with his 
propensity to get on base meshing 
with the modern style of the game, 
the Rockies used their fifth round 
pick to select a shortstop built for 
success.

Jordan Nwogu picked 88th by Cubs

The Chicago Cubs used the 

88th overall pick to draft junior 
outfielder Jordan Nwogu Thursday 
night. 

If Nwogu chooses to sign, which 

he plans to, the Cubs’ gain might 
just be bigger than the Wolverines’ 
loss. He capitalized on the 15-game 
sliver of 2020, posting a cumulative 
.353 batting average, .389 on-base 
percentage 
and 
.456 
slugging 

against exclusively NCAA-Regional 
level competition, despite the lack 
of top-of-the-order protection in 
the season’s opening weekends. 

Michigan’s offense ran through 

Nwogu in 2020, and the pressure to 
be ‘the man’ is evident in his metrics. 
His on-base to batting average 
differential is slim, and three steals 
in seven attempts yields an ugly 
percentage. 
His 
aggressiveness 

at the plate and on the basepaths 
showed 
Michigan 
coach 
Erik 

Bakich’s reliance on Nwogu to 
reach base and score. And with the 
rest of the lineup’s struggles to drive 
in or advance Nwogu, Bakich’s 
decision to put all of the chips on an 
extremely capable player in Nwogu 
was understandable. 

As other bats began to heat up 

and the Wolverines started non-
conference play against weaker 
competition, it’s safe to assume 
that Nwogu would have become 
more conservative and efficient 
on the basepaths, similar to his 
improvement 
in 
baserunning 

from last season. In addition to 
experiencing upward trends in 
on-base and slugging percentages, 
he put up a .992 OPS last season 
when he was surrounded by Jordan 
Brewer and Jimmy Kerr.

On defense this season, Nwogu 

was thrust into a starting outfielder 
role due to the departure of Jordon 
Brewer and the injury to Jesse 
Franklin. He handled only 24 

chances in 2019, a small sample size 
to predict future performance, but 
practiced diligently in the offseason 
after being a designated hitter for 
most of 2019. 

“He took a million fly balls out 

there in left field,” Bakich said of his 
offseason.

In 2020, as a result from 

offseason practice, Nwogu handled 
28 errorless chances and led the 
team in outfield assists.

The Wolverines won’t get the 

chance to see just how good Nwogu 
can become in the outfield. That 
privilege belongs to the Cubs, who 
know his offensive floor is high 
and who can help him reach his 
defensive ceiling.

Oakland Athletics select Jeff Criswell with 58th pick of MLB draft

In the second round of the 2020 

MLB Draft Thursday, the Oakland 
Athletics used the 58th pick to select 
junior right-hander Jeff Criswell.

In Criswell, the Athletics gain 

a pitcher who is a proven reliever 
and starter at the collegiate level. 
Criswell established himself as a 
reliever in his freshman season, 
posting a 2.23 earned-run average 
while striking out 32 batters in 32.1 
innings of work, before transitioning 
to the starting rotation prior to the 
2019 season. 

The six-foot-four right-hander 

from Portage, Michigan accrued 
a 7-1 record as a starter, improving 
with each outing, en route to an All-
Big Ten First Team selection. In the 
midst of the Wolverines’ postseason 
run last season, Bakich retained 
the confidence to stick Criswell 
back in the bullpen, and Criswell 

showed no letdown after a year 
away from being a reliever, proving 
his versatility.

It is likely, though, that Criswell’s 

development over his three years 
in Ann Arbor leads to the Athletics 
viewing him as a starting pitching 
prospect.

“He was very valuable for us last 

year,” Michigan coach Erik Bakich 
said in a press conference before 
the 2020 season. “He has gone from 
being maybe more of a thrower as 
a freshman, to a true pitcher with 
three-plus pitches, to a guy who’s 
regarded as one of the best amongst 
his peers. We’re glad to have him, 
and we’re sure glad he’s pitching for 
us on Fridays.”

Criswell’s stature provides him 

with the prototypical size that MLB 
organizations look for in potential 
workhorse-type 
arms, 
and 
his 

ability to hold his mid-90’s fastball 
velocity into the later innings 
suggests his strength matches his 

size.

The 
right-hander 
throws 
a 

steadily improving changeup and 
slider along with his plus fastball, 
but his greatest asset, perhaps, lies 
in his head rather than his arm. 
Despite 
his 
extensive 
physical 

development, 
Criswell 
is 
most 

proud of the significant progress he 
has made in his mental game while 
playing for Michigan by staying cool 
in high-pressure situations.

“Just being able to recognize 

where you’re at in the game and 
having that self-awareness is really 
important,” Criswell told The Daily 
after the season. “And it’s a very big 
help for me.”

Regardless 
of 
whether 
the 

Athletics decide to develop Criswell 
as a starter or a reliever, they will 
certainly be counting on him to use 
the same composure that allowed 
him to post a 2.88 career ERA with 
the Wolverines in order to pitch out 
of jams against professional hitters.

JACOB COHEN
Daily Sports Writer

JACOB COHEN
Daily Sports Writer

JACK WHITTEN
Daily Sports Writer

ALEXANDRIA POMPEI/Daily

Jeff Criswell was the first Wolverine selected in the MLB draft Thursday.

ERIN KIRKLAND/Daily

Junior Outfielder Jordan Nwogu was selected by the Cubs Thursday.

