Cincinnati picked left-handed pitcher Seth Lonsway, a 2017 Celina High School graduate, Wednesday in the 19th round of the Major League Baseball draft.
Lonsway, who is a member of Ohio State’s 2018 recruiting, was selected 557th overall. He was named the Division II co-state player of the year with Wapakoneta’s Manny Vorhees by the Ohio High School Baseball Coaches Association and the Western Buckeye League player of the year.
Also, former Lima Locos catcher Jalen Washington (Ohio State, 858th overall) and pitcher Jake Steffens (Santa Clara, 885) were taken in the 29th round by San Diego and the Chicago Cubs respectively and University of Northwestern Ohio pitcher Kyle Thomas went to Detroit in the 30th round with the 905th pick.
Elsewhere, Darren Baker got scooped up by dad’s team again.
The son of Washington manager Dusty Baker was drafted by the Nationals in the 27th round — 15 years after he first made headlines on the baseball diamond.
The younger Baker, now an 18-year-old speedy shortstop at Jesuit High School in California, was just 3 when he was a bat boy for the San Francisco Giants, managed by his father, in the 2002 World Series. During Game 5 against the Angels, Darren Baker had run to the plate to pick up a bat when J.T. Snow scored — and David Bell was flying down the third-base line and heading home.
Snow quickly plucked Baker out of the way, a moment that instantly became a part of World Series lore.
Darren Baker, who has a commitment to play at the University of California, hit .396 with a .476 on-base percentage as a senior.
The Nationals took two other players with familiar names: Penn right-hander Jake Cousins — cousin of Washington Redskins quarterback Kirk Cousins — in the 20th round, and California high school shortstop Jake Boone — son of former All-Star second baseman Bret Boone — in the 38th round.
Cousins was 7-2 with a 3.15 ERA in 11 starts this season for the Quakers, and his 20 career wins rank him third in program history.
“Congrats to my cousin, Jake, being drafted by the Washington Nationals today!” Kirk wrote on Twitter . “There’s room for another Cousins in DC!”
Detroit took Mississippi infielder Colby Bortles, the brother of Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles, in the 22nd round after the infielder hit .269 with a team-leading 10 homers and 42 RBI.
The three-day draft concluded Wednesday night with 1,215 players selected over 40 rounds, but Oregon State left-hander Luke Heimlich was not among them.
The ace of College World Series-bound OSU asked to be excused from the team last weekend after a story detailing his criminal history was reported by The Oregonian/Oregon Live. He pleaded guilty as a teenager five years ago to molesting a 6-year-old girl, and teams opted to not draft him.
Heimlich, originally projected as a third- or fourth-round pick, was 11-1 with a 0.76 ERA this season.
Several other notable names were selected during the final day of the draft:
• University of Kentucky right-hander Justin Lewis, cousin of Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman and former NBA forward/center Chuck Hayes, was taken by Tampa Bay in the 11th round.
• Arizona high school right-hander Cole Bellinger, son of former reliever Clay Bellinger and brother of the Dodgers’ Cody Bellinger, went in the 15th round to San Diego.
• Georgia high school lefty Peyton Glavine, son of Hall of Famer Tom Glavine, was a 37th-round selection of the Angels.
• Seminole State Junior College right-hander/shortstop Gunner Halter, son of former infielder Shane Halter, was drafted in the 22nd round by Toronto.
• UNC Charlotte outfielder Zach Jarrett, son of NASCAR Hall of Fame driver Dale Jarrett, was picked by Baltimore in the 28th round after hitting a career-best .342 with 13 homers and 45 RBIs.
• California high school righty Cole Percival, son of former All-Star closer Troy Percival, was taken in the 31st round by Arizona.
• New York high school third baseman Daniel Alfonzo, son of former infielder Edgardo Alfonzo, was taken by the Mets in the 38th round.
• The Chicago White Sox took right-hander Chance King, the son famed TV newsman Larry King, was taken by the White Sox in the 39th round. The elder King, a longtime Dodgers fan, tweeted: “One of the greatest thrills of my life was learning my son Chance has been picked by the (at)whitesox in the 39th round of the (hash)MLBDraft2017!!” Chance King played at IMG Academy in Florida and is from Beverly Hills, California
• The White Sox also drafted former Indiana basketball coach Tom Crean’s son Riley in the 35th round. Riley, a right-handed pitcher, is headed to Indiana. He is also Michigan football coach Jim Harbaugh’s nephew.
University of Texas red-shirt sophomore shortstop Kody Clemens, son of Roger Clemens, went undrafted a day after older brother Kacy was taken in the eighth round by Toronto.
The draft began Monday night with Minnesota taking California high school shortstop Royce Lewis with the No. 1 overall pick. The Cubs capped the three days of selections by drafting Lipscomb right-hander Jeffrey Passantino.
