ELON, N.C. – The Elon University baseball team had five players selected on day three of the 2013 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft on Saturday, June 8. Junior Ryan Kinsella was selected in the 18th round (540th overall) by the Arizona Diamondbacks, senior Alex Swim was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the 22nd round (650th overall), junior Antonio Alvarez was selected by the Diamondbacks in the 22nd round (660th overall), senior Kyle Webb was selected in the 32nd round (965th overall) by the St. Louis Cardinals and junior David Whitehead was selected in the 34th round (1,021st overall) by the Philadelphia Phillies.
 
The 2013 Southern Conference Player of the Year and a third-team All-American this season, Kinsella hit .313 as a junior with 21 home runs and 78 RBI. Kinsella’s 21 home runs are second in the nation behind San Diego’s Kris Bryant (31), while his 78 RBI are second to North Carolina’s Colin Moran (86). Kinsella also finished the season with a .656 slugging percentage, while also tallying 20 multi-RBI games and 23 multi-hit games in 2013. Kinsella was also a first-team All-Southern Conference honoree this season.
 
“The past few days I’ve been on the edge of my seat, so it was very relieving to be selected,” Kinsella said. “It’s a great feeling and something I’ve worked for my entire life.”
 
Elon’s all-time hits leader, Swim started all 64 games for the Phoenix this past season, batting .273 and collecting 74 total hits. Swim was successful in 15-of-18 stolen base attempts in 2013 as well. Behind the plate at catcher, Swim caught 11 runners stealing on the year and committed only four errors all season. Swim was selected by the St. Louis Cardinals in last year’s MLB Draft, but chose to return to Elon for his senior season.
 
“I’m very excited about this opportunity with the Twins,” Swim said. “[The MLB Draft] is always hit or miss and a whirlwind of emotions and I’m just really excited to get out there and play. The past month has been a whole lot of fun after winning the SoCon Tournament and going to the NCAA Regional finals and this is the cherry on top.”
 
Alvarez started 63 games for the maroon and gold this past season, batting .300 with 58 runs scored and 44 RBI. Alvarez tallied 22 extra base hits in 2013 and was successful in 10-of-14 stolen base attempts. Alvarez also drew a team-best 48 walks on the year.
 
“It’s an honor to be selected by the Diamondbacks,” Alvarez said. “Being drafted and fulfilling a childhood dream is something every player hopes to have happen to him. It’s a great feeling.”
 
A second-team All-Southern Conference performer this season, Webb was the lone SoCon weekend regular starter to go undefeated in league play this year as he put up a 6-0 mark with a 2.93 ERA in conference play. In 61.1 SoCon innings, the Jacksonville, Fla., resident struck out 65, issued just 13 walks and held opponents to a .256 batting average. Webb finished the season with a 7-3 record and 3.89 ERA in 18 appearances (16 starts), striking out 97 batters in 104.0 innings pitched. Webb walked just 21 batters this season and held opposing hitters to a .277 batting average.
 
“It’s been sort of surreal and it hasn’t really hit me yet,” Webb said. “You play baseball your entire life for a chance like this and I couldn’t be more happy. The last month or so has been such a wild ride. I left Elon on top of the world after winning the SoCon title and going to an NCAA Regional final, then today happened. I look forward to beginning this next chapter in my life.”
 
Whitehead spent most his 2013 season on the bench due to injury, but made nine appearances, including six starts, for the Phoenix. A native of West Chester, Ohio, Whitehead struck out 25 batters in 32.2 innings pitched this season. Whitehead was named a Cape Cod League All-Star last summer and was selected in the MLB Draft by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2010 out of high school.
 
“This is definitely an exciting opportunity,” Whitehead said. “Being injured for most of the season, I didn’t know if I would have this chance and what would happen, but I’m happy it did. The last month has been a lot of fun and I feel very lucky to have this opportunity.”
 
Elon has now had a total of 70 MLB Draft selections. This year marks the 14th consecutive year that the Phoenix baseball program has had at least one player selected in the MLB Draft. Elon’s five selections today are the third most in a single draft in program history. Seven Elon players were selected in both the 2010 and 2009 MLB Drafts.

Elon Baseball MLB Draft Picks
Ryan Kinsella - 18th round (540th overall), Arizona Diamondbacks
Alex Swim - 22nd round (650th overall), Minnesota Twins
Antonio Alvarez - 22nd round (660th overall), Arizona Diamondbacks
Kyle Webb - 32nd round (965th overall), St. Louis Cardinals
David Whitehead - 34th round (1,021st overall), Philadelphia Phillies