Sean Merriman, BTN.com web editor, June 8, 2015
Lots of strong emotions after a loss like that, but I am truly blessed to continue my baseball career as a Minnesota Twin!! @Twins
— Tyler Jay (@TyJay_11) June 9, 2015
Less than an hour after his season ended with a 4-2 loss to Vanderbilt in a Super Regional matchup, Illinois pitcher Tyler Jay was selected No. 6 overall by the Minnesota Twins in the 2015 MLB First-Year Player Draft on Monday night.
[ MORE: Take a closer look at Illini relief pitcher Tyler Jay ]
Jay becomes the highest draft pick in Fighting Illini history.
The lefty was named the Big Ten Pitcher of the Year after finishing the year with 14 saves and a sub-1.00 ERA.
With Jay landing in the first round, the Big Ten has now had a first-round pick in three of the last four MLB drafts, including back-to-back top 10 picks.
Purdue?s Kevin Plawecki was selected in the opening round of the 2012 draft by the New York Mets, while Indiana?s Kyle Schwarber was picked No. 4 overall by the Chicago Cubs in the 2014 draft.
[ MORE: View all of the picks on MLB.com's draft tracker ]
Congrats @TyJay_11! Special moment shared with his family & #Illini teammates! @MLBDraft No. 6 to the @Twins! pic.twitter.com/wZU9qKrtyb
— Illinois Baseball (@IlliniBaseball) June 9, 2015
The #MNTwins are proud to select @TyJay_11 from @IlliniBaseball with the 6th overall pick in the 2015 #MLBDraft! pic.twitter.com/2YFIG4MzwR
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) June 8, 2015
