WAUKESHA -- Despite never playing high school baseball, 18-year-old outfielder Jarred Kelenic molded himself into a top-10 MLB draft pick this week, the highest in the history of Wisconsin.
Instead of playing high school ball, Kelenic put all of his baseball efforts into Team USA. In 2016, he made Team USA's under 18 squad as a 16-year old. That year, Kelenic helped guide that team to the gold medal in the Pan American Games.
Last year, the 6'1" lefty helped lead Team USA to the U-18 World Cup Championship. In addition, he also scored the game winning run in the Under Armour All-American game, and participated in the high school home run derby during MLB All-Star weekend at Marlins Park.
Mets Director of Amateur Scouting, Marc Tramuta, told MLB.com's Anthony DiComo "We felt very comfortable selecting a player this high in the Draft who has tremendous makeup, passion for the game, intensity for the game."
