For the third straight year, the Indians took an outfielder with their first pick in the MLB Draft.
The Indians took University of San Francisco outfielder Bradley Zimmer with the 21st overall selection in the MLB Draft on Thursday night.
Zimmer batted .368 with seven home runs, 31 RBI and 21 stolen bases for the Dons this past season. He can play right or center and batted leadoff most of this year. Zimmer was also the postseason MVP in the Cape Cod League last summer. Zimmer is also one of 30 finalists for the Golden Spike award.
Zimmer's older brother Kyle, a right-handed pitcher, was the fifth overall pick by the Royals two years ago.
"We're really excited to get Bradley. He's a real good combination of athleticism, speed, defense and power," Indians Director of Scouting Brad Grant said. "He has a real good track record of success. He does a lot of things very well and to have that combination of tools in center field makes him a unique player."
Tyler Naquin, who was taken in the first round in 2012, is currently with Akron while Clint Frazier, who was the fifth overall pick last year, is with Lake County.
With the 31st pick, which was compensation for Ubaldo Jimenez signing with Baltimore, the Indians took Justus Sheffield, a left-handed pitcher out of Tullahoma (Tenn.) High School.
Sheffield went 10-0 with a 0.34 ERA (three earned runs in 61 2/3 innings pitched) and 131 strikeouts en route to being named the Gatorade National Player of the Year. Clint Frazier, who was taken No. 5 overall by the Indians last year, earned that award last year. Sheffield has committed to Vanderbilt, where his older brother Jordan just completed his freshman season.
"We've got an athletic left-hander with a real good combination of pitches. A fastball up to 95, a power slider, a feel for a changeup," Grant said.
In the competitive balance round, which was sandwiched between the first and second rounds, the Tribe selected University of Virginia outfielder Mike Papi 38th overall. Papi is batting .297 for the Cavaliers, who are in the NCAA Super Regionals, and led the Atlantic Coast Conference in home runs with 11. Grant described him as having a good left-handed bat with versatility in the field since Papi can be either a corner outfielder or play first base.
In the second round they selected Grant Hockin, a right-handed pitcher from Damien High School in La Verne, Calif. where he logged 20 career victories in 63 games across 4 varsity seasons for the Spartans. He went 9-3 with a 1.49 ERA in 14 games/13 starts during his senior season. Hockin is the grandson of late Hall of Fame infielder Harmon Killebrew and is currently committed to UCLA.
