Marlins select first baseman Josh Naylor 12th overall in 2015 MLB First-Year Player Draft
Ontario Native is First Canadian Drafted by Club in the First Round
MIAMI - The Miami Marlins tonight selected Canadian first baseman Josh Naylor with the 12th overall pick in the 2015 MLB First-Year Player Draft. The announcement was made by Marlins Vice President of Scouting Stan Meek.
Naylor, 17, attends St. Joan of Arc Catholic Secondary School in Mississauga, Ontario and is a veteran of the Canadian Junior National team and the Ontario Blue Jays amateur baseball program. He is the first Canadian player drafted in the first round in Club history.
With the Junior National team, he has traveled to play in Korea, Australia, Mexico, Taiwan, Cuba, Italy, the Dominican Republic, and the United States over the last four years. In an international showcase of junior teams in the Dominican Republic last month, he batted .340 (16x47) in 12 games, leading his club with 5 home runs and 10 RBI.
Traveling the United States with Ontario to play against Division 1 & 2 college programs in the fall of 2013 and 2014, Naylor combined to hit .449 (83x185) in 56 games, with 23 doubles, 15 home runs, 62 RBI, a .518 on-base percentage, and a .838 slugging percentage.
He was named a 2015 Perfect Game 1st Team All-American this year, as well as a Canada/Puerto Rico All-Regional 1st Team selection. Last year, he was named to the Perfect Game Underclass 1st Team, and in 2013 he was an Underclass High Honorable Mention. Naylor participated in the 2014 International Power Showcase Home Run Derby at Marlins Park, where he won the "Spirit of Babe Ruth" Award, presented to the participant who shows "Ability, Strength, Leadership, Passion and Respect for the game of baseball."
With their only other pick of the night, the Marlins selected left-handed pitcher Brett Lilek (South Holland, IL) from Arizona State University in the second round (50th overall). A junior, he went 4-2 with a 3.20 ERA (78.2 ip/28 er) in 17 appearances (15 starts) this season, with one complete game, 66 strikeouts, and a .213 average against.
Lilek is a two-time All-Pac 12 honoree, including a first-team selection after his sophomore season, when he went 4-5 with a 2.68 ERA.