UConn sophomore outfielder Kyler Fedko was selected in the 12th round of the MLB draft (369th overall) by the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday.
Fedko, the reigning Big East Player of the Year, hit .396 for the Huskies this season with 12 home runs and 14 doubles. The Gibsonia, Pennsylvania native hit .412 in a COVID-19 shortened 2020 campaign.
“I’m having so much fun,” Fedko said during the spring season. “Every hit feels amazing. It just feels amazing. The old saying of, ‘I hate failure more than I love winning.’ I think I’m the complete opposite. I love winning more than I hate failure. Every hit feels so good. … If I get a hit, I just feel on top of the world.”
Fedko was named a college baseball All-American by five outlets this spring and hit well for UConn in the postseason.
“He has innate gifts,” UConn coach Jim Penders said. “He’s a very confident player. You can get on him, and it’s not going to mess his confidence up. I think the thing that separates Kyler from most guys his age is that he’s so willing to work on his craft.”
UConn redshirt sophomore Caleb Wurster was also selected Tuesday by the Miami Marlins in the 15th round (449th overall). Wurster, a Coventry, Rhode Island native, pitched 41 innings out of the bullpen for the Huskies this past season and strung together a 2.63 ERA with 52 strikeouts.
The left-handed pitcher was named to the ABCA Second Team Northeast All-Region, and was a preseason D1Baseball.com Second Team All-American. An All-Big East honoree, Wurster saved nine games for the Huskies and recorded 12 in his career in Storrs.
Right-handed pitcher Andrew Marrero became the fifth Husky drafted this year when the St. Louis Cardinals chose him in the 18th round, 541st overall. The New Haven native appeared in 18 games for UConn this past season and struck out 28 batters in 21 1/3 innings. From March 20 to May 9, Marrero pitched 10 consecutive scoreless innings.
Teammate Pat Winkel, a sophomore catcher, was drafted by the Twins in the ninth round on Monday, and junior pitcher Ben Casparius was picked by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the fifth round.
Fairfield’s Trey McLoughlin, a senior right-hander and Shelton native, went in the 16th round (472nd overall) to the New York Mets. In five starts for the Stags, McLoughlin struck out 32 batters and posted a 4.94 ERA. He helped Fairfield earn an at-large bid to the NCAA men’s baseball tournament.
The Mets went to the Fairfield well once again in the 20th round, taking shortstop Justin Guerrera 592nd overall. The junior from Watertown hit .340 for the Stags with 11 home runs this season.
Shawn McFarland can be reached at smcfarland@courant.com.
