TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (Seminoles.com) — Florida State catcher Matheu Nelson, the nation’s leader in home runs and a unanimous first team All-American, was selected 35th overall by the Cincinnati Reds Sunday on the first day of the Major League Baseball Draft. Taken in the comp round, he is the highest-drafted Seminole since DJ Stewart went 25th overall to the Orioles in 2015.
Nelson, from Largo, Florida, led the country with 23 home runs and was the Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year. He finished his 2021 season with 66 runs batted in and a .330 average, both best on the team, and led the Seminoles to the NCAA Tournament for the 43rd consecutive season, the longest active streak in the country.
The winner of the both the Johnny Bench and Buster Posey Awards as the country’s best catcher, Nelson is the ninth Seminole drafted by the Reds and the first since John Sansone in 2016. He is the highest drafted FSU catcher since Posey, now in his 12th season with the San Francisco Giants, went fifth overall in 2008.
Rounds 2-10 of the MLB Draft continue Monday at 1 p.m.
