MLB Draft, locals: UM's Hajjar, Saginaw's Schwellenbach, Trenton's Ottenbreit, EMU's Meis

Michigan pitcher Steve Hajjar was a second-round pick by the Minnesota Twins, selected No. 61 overall on Monday afternoon.

Hajjar, a 6-foot-5 left-hander, was an All-Big Ten Conference first-team selection as a red-shirt sophomore this past season. He led the Big Ten in strikeouts (110). He was 4-2 with a 3.09 ERA in 14 starts.

Hajjar was a 21st-round pick by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2018 MLB Draft coming out of high school, where he was 2018 Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of Massachusetts.

Braves bag Schwellenbach

Nebraska right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach was selected by the Atlanta Braves with the 59th overall pick in the second round. 

Schwellenbach, who played high school baseball at Saginaw Heritage, was the 2021 Big Ten Player of the Year. The 6-1, 200 pounder also plays shortstop. 

On the mound, he was 3-1 with a 0.57 ERA in 31.2 innings. At the plate, he hit .284 with six home runs and 40 RBI.

Schwellenbach was Michigan Gatorade Player of the Year out of Heritage.

Ottenbreit to Phillies

Trenton High School pitcher Micah Ottenbreit was picked in the fourth round —  No. 114 overall —  by the Philadelphia Phillies.

Ottenbreit, a 6-foot-4 right-hander, wasn’t ranked on the mlb.com draft tracker. He has a fastball that has been clocked at 92 mph and now has a big decision ahead, start his professional career or play college baseball at Michigan State.

“I just went and competed this past high school season, knew I really trusted myself to get hitters out at any point of time," Ottenbreit said. "I really just try to pitch instead of trying to light up the gun. I feel like showing the scouts my pitch-ability was a good thing for me just because my frame and they see I can add velocity. So I don’t think they are worried about my velocity so much as can I pitch and what my mechanics look like.”

Ottenbreit was a 13-game winner his senior year at Trenton with a 0.98 ERA, striking out 170 in 107.1 innings while limiting batters to a .140 batting average.

EMU's Meis to Pirates

The Pittsburgh Pirates selected Eastern Michigan pitcher Justin Meis in the 10th round, with the 283rd overall pick.

Meis, a 6-2 junior right-hander and native of Pittsburgh, was 4-6 with a 4.64 ERA this past spring with the Eagles, striking out 81 in 73.2 innings.

Meis made a name for himself back in March when he worked eight scoreless innings against eventual national champion Mississippi State, taking a scoreless game into the ninth, before ultimately falling 4-1.

“I am incredibly excited for Justin to get drafted and have the ability to play professional baseball,” said EMU coach Eric Roof. “He has worked so hard during his time at Eastern Michigan and has accomplished so much. What is so exciting is that he still has even more potential for growth. He’s got an extremely bright future and we are so proud of him.”

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david.goricki@detroitnews.com