Illinois junior catcher Camden Janik earned several accolades this season, including being named to the All-America third team and Midwest All-Region first team by the American Baseball Coaches Association, on top of being named to the All-Big Ten first team. Janik can now add MLB draft pick to that list of accomplishments after being picked by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 12th round of this week’s MLB draft with the 354th overall selection.
The catcher was instrumental to the Illini’s success this season, leading the team in batting average (.356), hits (80) and total bases (120) while also appearing in all 56 games. Janik was one of the most difficult hitters to strike out this season, with his 20.5 AB/SO ratio ranking second in all of college baseball.
The most memorable moment of the season for Janik came on May 17 against Purdue, when he hit a grand slam to put the game out of reach. That win delivered Illinois their first Big Ten championship since 2015.
Janik is the first Illini to be selected by the Pirates since outfielder Ryan Nagle was taken in the 27th round of the 2015 draft, and is the first Illinois catcher drafted since Jason Goldstein was tabbed by the Mariners in 2016.
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