University of Minnesota Athletics
Photo by: Miami Marlins
Max Meyer Set to Make MLB Debut with Marlins
7/15/2022 9:18:00 AM | Baseball
The Woodbury native was the No. 3 overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft
MINNEAPOLIS – The Miami Marlins have called up former Gopher baseball star Max Meyer (Woodbury, Minn./Woodbury H.S.) to the major leagues, they announced Thursday night. The No. 3 overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft, Meyer made a rapid rise through the Marlins' system, spending less than two years playing A, AA and AAA before being called up to the MLB.
The standout right-handed pitcher is slated to start tomorrow afternoon in a home game against the Philadelphia Phillies. First pitch is set for 3:10 p.m. CT/4:10 p.m. ET on MLB.TV. The Marlins are 43-45 on the season and sit in fourth place in the NL East.
He spent most of the 2021 season playing with the Pensacola Blue Wahoos (AA), going 6-3 with a 2.41 ERA in 20 starts. He struck out 113 hitters in 101.0 innings pitched, allowing just 27 earned runs. After making two starts at AAA in 2021 for the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, Meyer started there in 2022, where he went 3-4 with a 3.72 ERA in 12 starts. In 58 innings, he struck out 65 while opposing batters hit just .188 off of him.
The right-hander was the highest draft pick in program history and the top pitcher ever drafted out of the University of Minnesota. He was Minnesota's ninth first round draft pick in the history of the program – the most of any program in the Big Ten Conference. Paul Molitor was also drafted No. 3 in 1977 while fellow MLB Hall-of-Famers Dave Winfield (No. 4 in 1973) and Dan Wilson (No. 7 in 1990) were also picked in the top 10.
Meyer and Molitor were tied as the second-highest MLB Draft picks in Big Ten history. The Gopher duo trails only Mark Mulder (Michigan State), who was taken No. 2 overall in 1998, in being the top draft selections in the history of the conference.
In his final year as a Gopher in a COVID-19 shortened 2020 season, Meyer went 3-1 on the mound with a 1.95 ERA and 46 strikeouts in just 27 2/3 innings of work (15.0 strikeouts-per-nine innings). Opposing hitters batted just .155 against Meyer in his junior campaign.
Collectively, Meyer registered 148 innings pitched during his three seasons with the Gophers, striking out 187 batters in the process for an 11.4 K/9. His 2.07 career ERA ranks fourth all-time at Minnesota, although he is the only member of the top-10 to have pitched in the past 42 years. Meyer's 18 career saves also rank third all-time in the 132-season history of the program.
Meyer excelled off the field as well, performing admirably in the classroom. He was named Academic All-Big Ten in both 2019 and 2020.
The standout right-handed pitcher is slated to start tomorrow afternoon in a home game against the Philadelphia Phillies. First pitch is set for 3:10 p.m. CT/4:10 p.m. ET on MLB.TV. The Marlins are 43-45 on the season and sit in fourth place in the NL East.
He spent most of the 2021 season playing with the Pensacola Blue Wahoos (AA), going 6-3 with a 2.41 ERA in 20 starts. He struck out 113 hitters in 101.0 innings pitched, allowing just 27 earned runs. After making two starts at AAA in 2021 for the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, Meyer started there in 2022, where he went 3-4 with a 3.72 ERA in 12 starts. In 58 innings, he struck out 65 while opposing batters hit just .188 off of him.
The right-hander was the highest draft pick in program history and the top pitcher ever drafted out of the University of Minnesota. He was Minnesota's ninth first round draft pick in the history of the program – the most of any program in the Big Ten Conference. Paul Molitor was also drafted No. 3 in 1977 while fellow MLB Hall-of-Famers Dave Winfield (No. 4 in 1973) and Dan Wilson (No. 7 in 1990) were also picked in the top 10.
Meyer and Molitor were tied as the second-highest MLB Draft picks in Big Ten history. The Gopher duo trails only Mark Mulder (Michigan State), who was taken No. 2 overall in 1998, in being the top draft selections in the history of the conference.
In his final year as a Gopher in a COVID-19 shortened 2020 season, Meyer went 3-1 on the mound with a 1.95 ERA and 46 strikeouts in just 27 2/3 innings of work (15.0 strikeouts-per-nine innings). Opposing hitters batted just .155 against Meyer in his junior campaign.
Collectively, Meyer registered 148 innings pitched during his three seasons with the Gophers, striking out 187 batters in the process for an 11.4 K/9. His 2.07 career ERA ranks fourth all-time at Minnesota, although he is the only member of the top-10 to have pitched in the past 42 years. Meyer's 18 career saves also rank third all-time in the 132-season history of the program.
Meyer excelled off the field as well, performing admirably in the classroom. He was named Academic All-Big Ten in both 2019 and 2020.
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