Now that the IU baseball season has come to an end on the diamond, the offseason begins.
The first event of the offseason was the MLB Draft, in which any Hoosier that has completed their junior or senior year, or is at least 21 years old, may have been selected.
The following four Hoosiers were taken during the 2018 MLB Draft.
Jonathan Stiever - Junior pitcher - Fifth round, 138th overall - Chicago White Sox
The first Hoosier off the board is junior starting pitcher Jonathan Stiever. Stiever was selected in the fifth round, 138th overall, by the Chicago White Sox.
Stiever drew the attention of scouts as a junior by rebounding from an up-and-down sophomore campaign with a solid season in which he was able to showcase his fastball and ability to fill up the strike zone, oftne dominating opposing teams at times.
The Hoosier pitcher was named First Team All-Big Ten after a strong season. He led the conference in strikeouts, whiffing 97 batters, and posted a 3.41 ERA and a 5-6 record in his 16 appearances this season.
IU’s ace has not been previously drafted. The projected signing bonus for his draft position is just more than $386,000.
He will have the option of returning to IU for his final season of college baseball before re-entering the draft next year.
Luke Miller - Junior Infielder - 22nd round, 647th overall - Philadelphia Phillies
After Stiever was picked in the fifth round, the Hoosiers had some waiting to do, but a second IU player finally came off the board in the 22nd round— junior infielder Luke Miller.
Miller was selected 647th overall by the Philadelphia Phillies on Wednesday, a nine-round, 296-pick jump from last year's draft when the Minnesota Twins selected him in the 31st round.
The slugger missed a chunk of the 2018 season with a foot injury, but was effective when on the field. The Muncie, IN native hit .309, hitting 13 home runs. He also drove in 34 runs, which was tied for third on the team with senior rightfielder Logan Sowers.
At the close of the regular season, Miller was named third team All-Big Ten, the second time he had received all-conference honors. The first time he was honored was in 2016, when he made the all-freshman team.
Logan Sowers - Senior outfielder - 28th round, 828th overall - Chicago White Sox
Just six rounds after Miller came off the board, Logan Sowers was selected as well. In the 28th round with the 828th overall pick, the Chicago White Sox took the senior rightfielder from Lafayette, IN.
In 2018, Sowers hit .299, driving in 34 runs and mashing 10 home runs. Those marks that would lead to him being named third team All-Big Ten.
The slugger received numerous other honors during his time in Bloomington. In 2015, he was named to the Big Ten’s all-freshman team. In 2016, he was named IU’s team MVP and in 2017, he was name second team All-Big Ten as well as IU’s offensive player of the year.
The former Indiana Mr. Baseball was drafted in the 31st round out of high school by the San Diego Padres and went undrafted in 2017, which came as a shock to many.
As a graduated senior, Sowers will almost certainly enter the White Sox organization, where he'll potentially be reunited with Hoosier outfielder Craig Dedelow and possibly Stiever if the Hoosier ace forgoes his senior year.
Tim Herrin - Junior pitcher - 29th round, 883rd overall - Cleveland Indians
The second IU pitcher selected in the 2018 MLB Draft was junior left-handed pitcher Tim Herrin, who was picked 883rd overall by the Cleveland Indians.
Herrin finished his junior campaign with a 3.22 ERA in 17 game appearances for IU Coach Chris Lemonis. Of those 17 appearances, 10 of them were starts. He overcame a slow start to the 2018 season to become a frequent Sunday starter for IU as conference play began.
Some of his notable starts included six-inning and seven-inning performances in wins against Notre Dame and Illinois, as well as a six-inning showing against Maryland in IU's final Big Ten Conference series of the season.
As a junior, Herrin will have the option to return to IU for his senior season.
