Jackson Kowar Selected 33rd Overall by Kansas City Royals
Monday, June 4, 2018 | Baseball
GAINESVILLE, Fla.—University of Florida junior right-hander Jackson Kowar was selected No. 33 overall in the 2018 Major League Baseball Draft by the Kansas City Royals.
Kowar will join teammate Brady Singer -- who was drafted 18th overall on Monday night -- in the Royals organization. Jonathan India was selected fifth overall by the Cincinnati Red earlier in the evening.
For the first time in school history the Gators have had three players selected in the first round of the same MLB Draft.
Florida head coach Kevin O'Sullivan has now had 10 players drafted in the first round, including at least one player in the first round in each of the last four years (see chart below). There have been 22 Gators selected in the first round in program history.
During his career at Florida Jackson Kowar has earned numerous awards. As a sophomore in 2017 he was a second team Perfect Game All-American honorable mention as well as a member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll. In 2018 he earned Second Team All-SEC honors.
Over the course of his career at Florida Kowar has earned 24 wins to just five loses with a career ERA of 3.63. In his 235.1 innings pitched he has struck out 219 batters with a batting average against of .258. He had a career-high 12 wins in the Gators' National Championship season while striking out a career best 91 in 2018.
Coming out of high school, Kowar was drafted in the 40th round of the 2015 MLB First-Year Player Draft by the Detroit Tigers.
Tuesday, June 5 – 12:30 p.m. on MLB.com (Rounds 3-10)
Wednesday, June 6 – 12 p.m. on MLB.com (Rounds 11-40)
The original First-Year Player Draft Rule called for drafting sessions to be held twice a year, January and June, with a regular phase and a secondary phase held in each draft. In 1987, baseball dissolved all but the regular phase of the June session. The secondary phase was held after the regular phase and was only for players who had been previously drafted but were not signed by the club that drafted them.
Kowar will join teammate Brady Singer -- who was drafted 18th overall on Monday night -- in the Royals organization. Jonathan India was selected fifth overall by the Cincinnati Red earlier in the evening.
For the first time in school history the Gators have had three players selected in the first round of the same MLB Draft.
Florida head coach Kevin O'Sullivan has now had 10 players drafted in the first round, including at least one player in the first round in each of the last four years (see chart below). There have been 22 Gators selected in the first round in program history.
During his career at Florida Jackson Kowar has earned numerous awards. As a sophomore in 2017 he was a second team Perfect Game All-American honorable mention as well as a member of the SEC Academic Honor Roll. In 2018 he earned Second Team All-SEC honors.
Over the course of his career at Florida Kowar has earned 24 wins to just five loses with a career ERA of 3.63. In his 235.1 innings pitched he has struck out 219 batters with a batting average against of .258. He had a career-high 12 wins in the Gators' National Championship season while striking out a career best 91 in 2018.
Coming out of high school, Kowar was drafted in the 40th round of the 2015 MLB First-Year Player Draft by the Detroit Tigers.
2018 MLB Draft Coverage
Monday, June 4 – 7 p.m. on MLB Network (Rounds 1-2)Tuesday, June 5 – 12:30 p.m. on MLB.com (Rounds 3-10)
Wednesday, June 6 – 12 p.m. on MLB.com (Rounds 11-40)
ALL-TIME GATOR BASEBALL FIRST ROUND DRAFT PICKS
| Player | Year | Team (Pick) |
| Jim Watkins | 1978 | Atlanta Braves (1st in the June - Secondary Phase) |
| Rob Murphy | 1981 | Cincinnati Reds (3rd in the January – Secondary Phase) |
| Randy O'Neal | 1981 | Detroit Tigers (15th in the June - Secondary Phase) |
| Robby Thompson | 1983 | San Francisco Giants (2nd in the June - Secondary Phase) |
| Rich Rice | 1983 | Baltimore Orioles (3rd in the June - Secondary Phase) |
| Scott Ruskin | 1986 | Montreal Expos (8th in the January - Secondary Phase) |
| Jamie McAndrew | 1989 | Los Angeles Dodgers (28th compensation) |
| John Burke | 1991 | Houston Astros (6th) *did not sign |
| John Burke | 1992 | Colorado Rockies (27th) |
| Marc Valdes | 1993 | Florida Marlins (27th) |
| Brad Wilkerson | 1998 | Montreal Expos (33rd compensation) |
| Matt LaPorta | 2007 | Milwaukee Brewers (7th) |
| Mike Zunino | 2012 | Seattle Mariners (3rd) |
| Brian Johnson | 2012 | Boston Red Sox (31st) |
| Jonathon Crawford | 2013 | Detroit Tigers (20th) |
| Richie Martin | 2015 | Oakland A's (20th) |
| A.J. Puk | 2016 | Oakland A's (6th) |
| Dane Dunning | 2016 | Washington Nationals (29th) |
| Alex Faedo | 2017 | Detroit Tigers (18th) |
| Jonathan India | 2018 | Cincinnati Reds (5th) |
| Brady Singer | 2018 | Kansas City Royals (18th) |
| Jackson Kowar | 2018 | Kansas City Royals (33rd) |
The original First-Year Player Draft Rule called for drafting sessions to be held twice a year, January and June, with a regular phase and a secondary phase held in each draft. In 1987, baseball dissolved all but the regular phase of the June session. The secondary phase was held after the regular phase and was only for players who had been previously drafted but were not signed by the club that drafted them.
Players Mentioned
RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
INF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
INF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ BaseballFlorida Baseball | The Infield | Meet the Gators
Friday, November 21
Meet the Gators: The Infielders
Friday, November 21
Florida Baseball | Orange & Blue Series Recap
Wednesday, November 19
Florida Baseball | The Southpaws | Meet the Gators
Friday, November 07
