University of North Carolina Athletics
Gallen Leads Trio Of Draft Picks Friday
June 11, 2016 | Baseball
Juniors Zac Gallen, Tyler Ramirez and A.J. Bogucki were selected on day two of the 2016 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft Friday. Gallen was taken in the third round by St. Louis, Ramirez was a seventh-round selection by Oakland and Bogucki was an eighth-round pick by Washington. This year marks the seventh time since 2000 that at least three Tar Heels were selected in the first 10 rounds of the draft.
A third-team All-ACC selection as a junior, Gallen was 5-6 with a team-best 2.68 ERA in 13 starts. He posted 95 strikeouts against just 21 walks and limited opponents to a .213 batting average. Gallen was a three-time ACC Pitcher of the Week, and his complete-game, 13-strikeout shutout against Virginia Tech earned him National Pitcher of the Week accolades.
Ramirez had his finest season as a Tar Heel in 2016, leading the team in a number of offensive categories, including home runs, walks, slugging percentage and on-base percentage. The Suffolk, Virginia, product hit .333 during the regular season with eight long balls and 47 RBIs while playing high-level defense in center. Ramirez started all 30 ACC regular season games and hit a team-best .317 with five homers and 25 RBIs.
Bogucki had a breakout campaign in 2016. The hard-throwing reliever posted a 5-5 record in 28 appearances with a 2.86 ERA over 50.1 innings of work. A native of Gilbertsville, Pennsylvania, Bogucki struck out a bullpen-best 53 batters and limited opponents to a .212 batting average.
