FAYETTEVILLE -- John Boushelle, a senior right-handed pitcher at Fayetteville, was selected in the 20th round of the Major League Baseball Amateur Draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday.
Boushelle, who has signed with Kansas State and is already in Manhattan, Kan. this summer, had a breakout season with the Bulldogs this spring. On the mound, Boushelle finished 4-1 with a 0.96 ERA with two saves. In 37 2/3 innings pitched, the 6-foot-4 senior allowed just 23 hits and finished with 44 strikeouts.
"The Dodgers were real high on him," Fayetteville coach Scott Gallagher said. "They had John in for a pre-draft camp and they liked him a lot.
"It wasn't a surprise he went where he did. They were talking somewhere between the 15th and 25th rounds and he went right in the middle of that."
Boushelle caught the attention of Kansas State the summer before his senior season and signed with the Wildcats last November. With Boushelle already in Manhattan, Gallagher indicated he expected the draft to have no impact on his plans to attend college.
Fellow Purple'Dog pitcher Andy Pagnozzi, son of former Arkansas Razorbacks and St. Louis Cardinals catcher Tom Pagnozzi, was also selected in the draft Tuesday. Andy Pagnozzi went in the 36th round to the Colorado Rockies. Pagnozzi, who finished 9-1 this season with a 0.96 ERA, has signed with Ole Miss and told Gallagher on Wednesday he would attend college rather than sign a pro contract.
With the two draft picks Wednesday, Fayetteville has now had eight players drafted under retiring coach Vance Arnold since 2000 -- the most of any school in the state in that time span. This year also marks the second time Fayetteville has had two players drafted directly out of high school in the same year. In 2000, both Cody Clark and Thomas Olejniczak were drafted.
-- Vernon Tarver • @NWAVernon
Sports on 06/11/2015