The 2016 Major League Baseball draft begins Thursday, and one local player is expected to hear his name called in the first round.
Kent State’s Eric Lauer is an Academic All-American, MAC Pitcher of the Year and Collegiate Baseball's National Player of the Year.
The Golden Flashes season is over, but what a season for Lauer. He finished with a 0.69 ERA, best in the nation. He only allowed eight earned runs in 104 innings.
Lauer’s 0.69 ERA is the lowest for a starter in 37 years. The Kent State lefty delivered a signature game against Bowling Green in mid-May, tossing a No-hitter to clinch the MAC regular-season championship.
The kid from Elyria also authored a no-no in high school. Lauer was drafted out of Midview in 2013 by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 17th round.
Three years later, he’s expected to be drafted in the first round. Lauer found major motivation in middle school when one of his teachers told him a career in professional baseball was unlikely.
He graduated from Kent State in three years with a 3.7 GPA and will likely become just the seventh first-round pick in Kent State baseball history.
The 2016 MLB Draft is June 9-11.
