Jeremy Hamilton (Left) and Justin Parker Were Both Selected In the Top Six Rounds of the 2008 Major Leage Draft

June 5, 2008

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. - The Wright State baseball team had two players taken in the same draft for the fourth time in school history on Thursday afternoon at the MLB First Year Player Draft. Jeremy Hamilton went with the 166th pick to the Philadelphia Phillies and Justin Parker was taken by the Arizona Diamondbacks with the 198th overall pick.

Hamilton was the sixth player in Wright State history to be drafted in the top-five rounds and was the firs WSU player ever selected by the Philadelphia organization.

The junior first baseman will be the 20th player ever drafted out of Wright State and will join an organization with a history of solid players at his position. The 2008 Horizon League Player of the Year posted a .410 batting average and led the Horizon League in slugging percentage, on-base percentage and walks. Hamilton was a two-time First Team All-Horizon League selection during his time with the Raiders.

It was the second year in a row that a member of the Parker family was drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. The junior infielder was the first player drafted by the Diamondbacks and will now head for the majors as an infielder.

Parker has boasted a batting average of .300 or better during each of his three seasons at Wright State. His 2008 batting average of .395 is the eighth highest in a single season and his 53 RBI's this year rank him ninth on the season charts. He ranks tied atop the career doubles chart at WSU with Jon Sbrocco with 55 and owns a career on-base percentage of .436. He is a two-time First Team All-Horizon League selection and was a Second Team All-Region performer last season.

The duo was the first pair of players selected in the first six rounds of the MLB draft in Horizon League history. It also marks the fourth time in school history that Wright State has had multiple players drafted in the same draft.

The following players are the 21 players that have been taken in the Major League Draft,

1976 - Bob Grote; New York Mets (12th)
1980 - Dave Lockner; Cincinnati Reds (14th)
1983 - Fred Blair; Montreal Expos (19th)
1987 - Greg Karklins; Kansas City Royals (46th)
1990 - Mike Mathile; Montreal Expos (3rd, 84th pick)
Keith Gordon; Cincinnati Reds (2nd, 47th pick)
1992 - Jeff Ashton; Cincinnati Reds (16th)
1993 - Brian Anderson; California Angels (1st, 3rd pick)
Jon Sbrocco; San Francisco Giants (49th)
1994 - Scott Huntsman; Milwaukee Brewers (21st)
1995 - Sean Gill; New York Mets (45th)
1997 - Chris Wallace; New York Yankees (14th)
1999 - Dusty Beam; Detroit Tigers (20th)
2001 - Joe Powers; Cincinnati Reds (23rd)
2002 - Nathan Kopp; New York Yankees (28th)
Nick Shields; Texas Rangers (29th)
2003 - Casey Abrams; Seattle Mariners (5th, 146th pick)
2006 - Joe Smith; New York Mets (5th, 94th pick)
2007 - Ross Oeder; St. Louis Cardinals (28th)
2008 - Jeremy Hamilton; Philadelphia Phillies (5th, 166th pick)
Justin Parker; Arizona Diamondbacks (6th, 198th pick)

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