Collegiate slugger Woodman taken at No. 57

June 9th, 2016

TORONTO -- The Blue Jays are known for developing pitchers, but they haven't had a power hitter come through their system in quite some time. That trend might have started to change Thursday night with a player some call "Superman."
Toronto selected center fielder J.B. Woodman with the 57th overall pick of the MLB Draft. Woodman is a collegiate center fielder from Mississippi who earned the nickname "Superman" in school and led the Southeastern Conference with 14 home runs.
The pick was made just nine spots before Toronto selected another power hitter, infielder Bo Bichette, who is the son of former Major League All-Star Dante Bichette. Woodman is coming off a season in which he was named to the All-SEC first team after hitting .323 with 53 runs, 55 RBIs and a .578 slugging percentage.
• Blue Jays tab towering Zeuch with 21st pick
Earlier in the night, Toronto selected 6-foot-7 college right-hander T.J. Zeuch with its first-round pick, which was 21st overall. The addition of a starting pitcher, infielder and outfielder should start the process of rounding out a Minor League system that was left relatively bare following a series of major moves over the last 12 months.
The Draft continues on Friday with Rounds 3-10. The MLB.com preview show begins at 12:30 p.m. ET, with exclusive coverage of Rounds 3-10 beginning at 1 p.m. ET.
:: Complete 2016 Draft coverage ::

Woodman was expected to go in the first five rounds of the 2013 Draft, but he slipped because of signability concerns. He was later taken by the Mets in the 40th round but decided to attend Mississippi instead of turning pro.
The 21-year-old came on strong late in the season and helped Ole Miss qualify for a regional round in the NCAA tournament. Woodman had some issues in his first two years of college but bounced back in a big way this year and showed off some of the five-tool talent that made him such a hyped high school player three years prior.
• Blue Jays select Bichette with pick No. 66
"I love the kid," South Carolina head coach Chad Holbrook recently told the Ole Miss Rebel Walk. "We played Ole Miss earlier in the year. I just thought he was one of the best players we have ever faced. I thought he was terrific with his athleticism. He's one of the more polished players, athletic players. It's been fun to watch him play."
According to MLBPipeline.com, Woodman doesn't have a true plus skill set at this point of his career, but he can do a little bit of everything. He was ranked the No. 83 prospect in the Draft and was recently named to the All-Defensive team after collecting nine outfield assists.
"He can hit for average, he can hit with some power," a Major League scout told The Clarion-Ledger. "I think he has good instincts, where he has shown the ability to play center field, and the arm is slightly above average ... He can do a little bit of everything. There's not that many guys that can do that."