Oregon State Pitcher Chase Watkins Drafted By Chicago Cubs

CORVALLIS, OR — Oregon State University pitcher Chase Watkins was picked by the Chicago Cubs in the ninth round of the Major League Baseball first-year player draft Monday.

Watkins is a left-handed pitcher who was picked 274th overall. He played in 25 games for the Beavers this year as a relief pitcher, according to a news release from the university athletics department. He is the fourth Beaver to be drafted by the Cubs; the last was Kevin Rhoderick in 2010.

Watkins was named to the Fort Worth Regional All-Tournament Team after finishing the season with a 3-4 record and 4.88 ERA, according to the university. He recorded 38 strikeouts in roughly 31 innings and struck out six in six innings in the postseason.

The native of Watsonville, Calif. also spent time at first base and in the outfield as a St. Francis High School player, according to his OSU Beavers bio.

He went on to play as a freshman at California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo and as a sophomore at the College of Central Florida before heading to Corvallis, Oregon, to play for the Beavers — a team he said he chose for its “winning tradition, the coaching staff and the player development,” according to his bio.