Washington Nationals take Shaddy in 10th round of draft

FAYETTEVILLE — Senior infielder Carson Shaddy was the fifth Razorback taken in the 2018 Major League Baseball first-year player draft, as he was selected in the 10th round, 311th overall, by the Washington Nationals on Tuesday afternoon.

Shaddy is the fifth Razorback selected on the draft’s second day and the second infielder. He joins Blaine Knight, Eric Cole, Grant Koch, and Jax Biggers as the other Arkansas selections today.

With his selection, Shaddy also joins the rank of his father and former Razorback infielder Chris Shaddy, who was selected in the eighth round by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 1982 MLB Draft.

Shaddy has had quite the career at Arkansas since arriving in 2014 from nearby Fayetteville High School.

Shaddy redshirted his true freshman year and then was the Hogs’ primary catcher at the tail end of the 2015 season which ended in a trip to the College World Series.

He hit .337 that year, second highest on the team in 44 games, including 14 starts as a catcher and an outfielder.

The Fayetteville native underwent Tommy John surgery on his throwing arm prior to his redshirt sophomore season and made the move to third base for the 2016 season.

That year, he led the team with a .332 batting average that included 70 hits, 41 runs scored, and a .521 slugging percentage.

This year has been a career year for Shaddy as he’s hit .331 with career highs in home runs (11) and RBIs (43) en route to an All-SEC First Team selection.

He opened the season with a big weekend performance against Bucknell, totaling nine RBIs in 12 plate appearances, including two-straight four-RBI days and two homers, as he was named the SEC Player of the Week.

At the end of the regular season, Shaddy was leading the team with a .354 batting average and in the top-10 among all league players in batting, slugging, and on-base percentage.

He’s made 47 starts in 50 games at second base and only committed eight errors in 206 chances this season.

Day two of the draft concluded today on MLB.com. Wednesday will be the final day of the draft and will include rounds 11-40 starting at 11 a.m. All selections can be followed on MLB.com.

Shaddy and the Razorbacks will resume action this weekend at the NCAA Fayetteville Super Regional against league foe South Carolina. Game one is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. Saturday.