CHICAGO – The Chicago Cubs tonight selected shortstop Ed Howard out of Mount Carmel High School in Chicago with the 16th overall pick in the 2020 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.

Howard was recommended by area scout John Pedrotty.

Howard, 18, batted .421 (48-for-114) with 11 doubles, four triples and three homers in 35 games during his 2019 junior season with Mount Carmel. He was named a 2020 pre-season All-American by Perfect Game, but his 2020 high school campaign was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The right-handed hitting Howard played in the 2019 Under Armour All-America Game at Wrigley Field, and last year was a member of Team USA’s 18-under club.

Howard was the starting shortstop on the 2014 Jackie Robinson West Little League Team that advanced to the finals of the Little League World Series.

The six-foot, two-inch, 185-pound Howard becomes the first Illinois high school position player to be selected in the first round of the MLB draft since Jayson Werth in 1997. Howard has committed to the University of Oklahoma.

The 2020 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft concludes tomorrow with rounds two-through-five.