UConn pitcher Andrew Marrero taken in 18th round of MLB Draft by St. Louis Cardinals

With the 541st pick in the 2021 MLB Draft, the St. Louis Cardinals selected UConn pitcher Andrew Marrero with their 18th round pick.

He’s now the fifth Husky taken in this year’s draft, joining Ben Casparius (fifth round, Los Angeles Dodgers), Pat Winkel (ninth round, Minnesota Twins), Kyler Fedko (12th round, Minnesota Twins) and Caleb Wurster (15th round, Miami Marlins). Two UConn commits have also been selected — Frank Mozzicato, who went seventh overall to the Kansas City Royals and Owen Kellington, a fourth round pick of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Though Marrero was listed as a freshman, he just completed his second season with the Huskies and became eligible for the draft by turning 21 on May 8. This past year, he appeared in 18 games and picked up 28 strikeouts while walking just eight in 21.1 innings. Marrero held a 4.22 ERA and limited opposing hitters to a .225 batting average.

A native of New Haven, Marrero throws a fastball that sits between 93-95 mph and also features a slider. Because he only has two pitches in his repertoire, Marrero is a relief-only type player at the professional level.

Marrero is just the third UConn player taken by the Cardinals in the Jim Penders Era along with fellow pitchers Carson Cross (14th round, 2015) and John Folino (27th round, 2009).

Despite the MLB Draft being shortened to 20 rounds (instead of 40), UConn’s five selections are tied with 2019 as the second-most in a single year since Penders took over behind only 2011 (10 players taken).