Bellevue West graduate and former Nebraska pitcher Jaxon Jelkin was the lone local player to go on the final day of the MLB draft Tuesday.
The sophomore right-hander went in the 14th round (No. 430 overall) to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The starter at South Mountain CC in Arizona last spring posted a 3.81 earned-run average across 14 starts and 75 2/3 innings. Jelkin struck out 98 batters and walked 43 while allowing 66 hits. He spent his freshman year at Nebraska in 2022 with a 2.31 ERA in 11 2/3 frames.
A quiet closing day followed two busy ones in the draft that spanned 20 rounds and 614 picks in all.
Nebraska had four total players drafted between infielders Brice Matthews (first round, No. 28 overall to Houston) and Max Anderson (second, No. 45 to Detroit) and pitchers Emmett Olson (fourth, No. 110 to Miami) and Jace Kaminska (10th, No. 292 to Colorado). Omaha’s Mike Boeve (second, No. 54 to Milwaukee) also went on the first day.
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Other in-state products to be selected were Lincoln Southeast grad and Lipscomb left-hander Logan Van Treeck (ninth, No. 258 to Cincinnati) and Kearney product and outfielder Jared Wegner (ninth, No. 282 to New York Yankees).
Not taken was Millard South shortstop Camden Kozeal, the two-time Nebraska Gatorade Player of the Year. A regarded prospect, his predetermined dollar figure was enough to keep teams from spending draft capital on him.