Dreams turned to realities on Sunday night with the start of the 2023 MLB Draft. The first round was full of the best talent from the college baseball ranks and even some high school draftees.
University of Virginia catcher Kyle Teel was projected to be drafted in within the first 10 picks and that proved to be not far off. The New Jersey native was taken 14th overall by the Boston Red Sox. Teel started 175 games during his UVA career, capping off his career in the top 10 in five career categories. Teel finished 7th in home runs (28), 8th in runs scored (170), 9th in total bases (376), 9th in doubles (48) and 10th in batting average (.343).
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Teel’s production at the plate was second to none, having hit four career grand slams--the most of any UVA player. In a program-first, Teel was also the recipient of the Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year Award for his outstanding 2023 season.
Cavalier third baseman Jake Gelof was selected in the second round (60th overall) by the Los Angeles Dodgers on day one of the 2023 MLB Draft. Gelof is the second Cavalier selected in this year’s draft and marks the seventh time since 2014 that Virginia has produced multiple draft picks in the first two rounds.
A total of 96 Cavaliers have been selected in the MLB Draft since Brian O’Connor took over the program in 2004.
Gelof finished his UVA career as the most prolific power hitter and run producer in program history. The Rehoboth Beach, Del. native is the program’s all-time leader in home runs (48) and RBI (186). He set the program’s single season records for home runs (23) and RBI (90) in 2023. Gelof earned All-America honors for the second-straight season from NCBWA (second team), Collegiate Baseball Newspaper (second team) and Perfect Game (third team).
Gelof started all 65 games for the Cavaliers at third base in 2023 and batted .321 (81-for-252) with 23 doubles. He also scored 71 runs, tied for the third-most in a single season in school history. His 90 RBI as a junior broke his own school record set last year and were the fourth-most in the country. He led the ACC in RBI and ranked in the top-5 in the league in total bases (2nd), doubles (3rd) and home runs (4th). One of the most feared hitters in the country, Gelof walked 48 times this past season, the sixth-most in program history.
Over the course of his three years in Charlottesville, Gelof started 147-straight games, including all 65 at third base for UVA in 2023. He batted .329 in 161 career games for the Blue and Orange. In addition to being the program’s home run and RBI king, Gelof accumulated 393 total bases, the fifth-most of any Cavalier.
Gelof joins his brother Zack in professional baseball who was also the 60th overall pick back in 2021 by the Athletics and now the organization’s No. 3 overall prospect according to MLB.com. The Gelofs and Joe and Jake McCarthy are the second set of brothers to play at UVA to both be drafted in the top five rounds of the MLB Draft.