Former Notre Dame pitcher Cameron Junker was taken by the Pittsburgh Pirates with the 304th pick of the MLB Draft on Tuesday. Cincinnati native just concluded his junior season and became the 118th member in program history to be selected in the MLB Draft.
After making only one appearance throughout his rookie season, Junker showed promise in his sophomore campaign, making 14 appearances on the mound and starting nine of them. His big breakout came this past season when he made 15 starts as pitcher. His most notable improvement came in his earned run average (ERA), where he cut his sophomore statistic of 8.74 to less than half of its value at 4.19.
The Pirates finished fourth in the National League Central Division, a position they‘ve maintained in the first quarter of this season. However, they have managed to mount a successful record on the road, going 17-13, making them one of only 10 teams to having a winning record away from home so far. Junker‘s 10th-round selection marked the 12th player taken by the Pirates and the first for the Irish.
