During the second day of the Major League Baseball Amateur Draft on Saturday, the Toronto Blue Jays drafted Bombers’ shortstop, rising senior Timothy Locastro, in the 13th round and the 385th pick overall.
Locastro is the fourth Bomber in the past five years to be drafted by an MLB team. After the 2012 season, the Oakland Athletics drafted then-senior pitcher Tucker Healy ’12. Locastro is the 94th player in Ithaca College baseball program history to be drafted to play professional baseball.
The Auburn, N.Y., native is a two-time First-Team Empire 8 conference all-star and was selected by the American Baseball Coaches Association as a First Team All-American this season.
Locastro anchored the Bombers’ team this season, which finished with 41 wins, setting a program record. In the Bombers’ run to the final four of the Division III NCAA Baseball Championship, Locastro hit a team-high .436 batting average and became the college’s record holder in runs scored and stolen bases with 71 and 40, respectively.
Because Locastro was drafted at the end of his junior year, he has the option to decline this draft offer while maintaining his year of eligibility and go back into the draft after next season.
According to MLB.com, the Blue Jays retain the rights to sign Locastro until 11:59 p.m. Aug. 15, or until he returns to the college on a full-time basis. If Locastro does not sign with the Toronto organization, he may be drafted again in the future. However, the Blue Jays cannot select Locastro again unless he consents to the re-selection.
