Marks Selected by Detroit Tigers in Eighth Round of 2021 MLB Draft
7/12/2021 5:23:00 PM | Baseball
Denver, Colo. – USC Upstate right-handed pitcher Jordan Marks was selected 225th overall in the 8th round of the 2021 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Detroit Tigers on Monday afternoon.
The Bright's Grove, Ontario native and Friday night ace is the 19th draft pick in program history and the first since Blake Whitney, who was selected by the Chicago Cubs in 2018. Marks is the second-highest draft pick for the Spartans behind Chad Sobotka who was taken in the 4th round, 133rd overall, by the Atlanta Braves in 2014.
Marks is the 11th draft pick under Mike McGuire as a head coach, and the first for Coach McGuire since he and his staff took over the Spartan program ahead of the 2020 season.
Marks capped his Upstate career with a record-breaking 2021 campaign. On May 7 at High Point, he broke the school record for strikeouts and wins in a single season, and he ended the season with 101 strikeouts and 10 wins. With the win at UNC Asheville on May 20, Marks also became the all-time wins leader in Upstate's program history with 21 in his career.
On the backend of his stellar 2021 season, Marks was named the Big South Pitcher and Scholar-Athlete of the Year. He became the first-ever Spartan to be named to the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List, and was honored as a member of the ABCA/Rawlings Atlantic All-Region Second Team in addition to earning NCBWA DI All-American Third Team honors.
Marks boasted the best ERA in the Big South Conference this past year with a 2.54 and led the league in wins, strikeout-to-walk ratio, and WHIP. The four-time Big South Pitcher of the Week threw a conference-high 95.2 innings and allowed a league-low 32 runs on the year.
In four years as a Spartan, Marks held a 21-16 record with a 3.91 ERA. He made 46 starts out of 49 appearances, and racked up 230 strikeouts in his career.
Monday concludes with round 10 of the 2021 MLB Draft, and the final rounds will take place on Tuesday beginning at noon.
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