And with pick No. 625 in the 2011 MLB First-Year Player Draft, the Cincinnati Reds select: former Sinclair Community College and University of Cincinnati pitcher Daniel Jensen.
“At first, I had a big smile on my face,” Jensen said of his thoughts when he got the call from the Reds telling him he was drafted. “It was all of this hard work paying off. It was a dream come true.”
Jensen pitched at UC his last three seasons and before that at Sinclair. He credited coach Steve Dintaman and pitching coach Rick Castle with helping him get to the point he is at today.
“Without them, I wouldn’t be here,” Jensen said.
Major League Baseball has two drafts every year. One, called the “Rule 5” draft, occurs every December and features players already in organizations. The second, called the “Rule 4” or “First-Year Player” draft, features entirely amateur players from the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.
This year’s First-Year Player Draft featured more than 50 rounds and more than 1,500 players drafted.
Jensen was drafted and signed his contract two days later.
The Reds officials he dealt with asked him if he wanted to play professional baseball, and he said he did. They slid him a contract and he signed it.
“There wasn’t much negotiation,” Jensen said. “I was a senior and didn’t have much leverage.”
Jensen is pitching for the Billings Mustangs (Billings, Mont.) in the Rookie Pioneer League. He’s thrown 3.2 innings, has a 2.45 ERA, walked one batter and struck out 5.
“My first inning at Billings, I was really nervous,” Jensen said. “My first hit allowed was a home run. But my second inning I settled down.”
The quality of competition has gone up at Billings, Jensen said.
“Most college teams have five or six guys that are easier to get out,” Jensen said. “Now it is much tougher.”
He said the Reds told him to work on getting exposure on the mound to begin his career. Part of that will be getting used to playing in front of a bigger crowd.
Jensen said more than 2,000 people appeared at his first home game in Billings. That experience made him realize that he was a professional baseball player.
“I had goosebumps,” Jensen said.