Kennesaw State first baseman Austin Upshaw was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the 13th round of the 2017 MLB Draft on Wednesday.

In his two seasons with the Owls, the junior from Buford earned a career batting average of .339 and a fielding percentage of .992.

"We are excited for Austin and his family. It's a tremendous honor for him and he's had a long history of playing consistently and hitting at a high level," Kennesaw State coach Mike Sansing said. "He's a tremendous student of the game and the Cubs got a quality player in the draft."

A graduate of Buford High School, Upshaw was the 405th overall selection in the Draft and the 64th player to be drafted out of Kennesaw State’s baseball program.


Kennesaw State signee Beau Hanna was also drafted on Wednesday by the Boston Red Sox in the 12th round, 371st overall. Hanna just completed his senior season as catcher for Winder Barrow High School.
"Beau has a rare commodity with big time power at the plate, and that attracted a lot of teams. He has a tremendous family as we got to know him and still anticipate on him coming to Kennesaw State," Sansing said.

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