Orioles add pitching; three local players taken on day two of MLB Draft

Day two of Major League Baseball’s first-year-player draft wrapped up Tuesday evening. Here’s a look at how Baltimore fared — as well as the Maryland-based players taken.

Orioles add pitching once again

For the fifth consecutive draft, Baltimore has selected at least five pitchers within the first 10 rounds.

On Tuesday, the Orioles used seven of their eight picks on pitching — five of those pitchers are right handed.

One pitcher was picked out of high school and another was selected from Leadership Christian Academy in Puerto Rico. The remaining five became draft eligible via colleges and universities.

The non-pitching draftee was Robert Neustrom, an outfielder from the University of Iowa, in the fifth round.

Here’s the complete list of Baltimore’s day two selections:

RD 3 – PICK 87: Blaine Knight, RHP, University of Arkansas

RD 4 – PICK 115: Drew Rom, LHP, Highlands High School (KY)

RD 5 – PICK 145: Robert Neustrom, OF, University of Iowa

RD 6 – PICK 175: Yeankarlos Lleras, RHP, Leadership Christian Academy (PR)

RD 7 – PICK 205: JJ Montgomery, RHP, University of Central Florida

RD 8 – PICK 235: Ryan Conroy, RHP, Elon University (NC)

RD 9 – PICK 265: Kevin Magee, LHP, St. John’s University (NY)

RD 10 – PICK 295: Dallas Litscher, RHP, University of Saint Katherine (CA)

Local products have their names called 

Three local products were selected on Tuesday. And the Cleveland Indians took two of them.

The Indians used their 103rd overall pick on Towson University shortstop Richie Palacios, who was ranked the 142nd best player entering the draft by Baseball America. Palacios’ name may sound familiar, as his dad played minor league baseball and his brother, Josh, is currently in the Toronto Blue Jays’ organization.

Cleveland then used its seventh round selection on University of South Carolina pitcher Cody Morris. The right-hander was originally drafted by the Orioles out of Howard County’s Reservoir High School in 2015 following Tommy John Surgery, but the Laurel native chose to go to college instead.

Nick Dunn, a second baseman from the University of Maryland, was drafted in the fifth round by the St. Louis Cardinals. Dunn, a left-handed hitter, was ranked as the seventh best second baseman in the draft.

The draft concludes Wednesday with rounds 11-40 starting at 12 p.m.