Two former Indiana baseball players, redshirt senior right-handed pitcher Craig Yoho and fifth-year senior shortstop Phillip Glasser, were selected in the eighth and 10th rounds, respectively, during the second day of the 2023 MLB Draft Monday in Seattle.
Yoho, the No. 242 pick in the eighth round by the Milwaukee Brewers, establishes that an Indiana pitcher has been drafted in the top 10 rounds in five of the past six drafts. The last Hoosier pitcher Milwaukee took was Eric Arnett in the first round of the 2009 MLB Draft.
For his first two collegiate seasons, Yoho played at the University of Houston, though he suffered an injury three weeks into the 2019 season and the 2020 season was canceled due to COVID-19. Yoho, who is from Fishers, transferred back home to Indiana for the 2021 season, but didn’t play that year or the next due to Tommy John surgery and his knee injury.
In Yoho’s first complete college season in 2023, the right-hander earned Freshman All-American honors by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and was named the 2022-23 Indiana Athletics Andy Hipskind Comeback Award winner. In 18 appearances, all from the bullpen, Yoho struck out 63 batters in 37 innings – 15.3 strikeouts per nine innings.
Following the 2023 season, Yoho announced he was transferring to the University of Arkansas on June 28, weeks before his draft selection Monday. Though speculative, his bio on Twitter only says “Milwuakee Brewers.” Yoho’s approximate pick value is $196,700 if he chooses to sign with the Brewers and not return to play baseball at Arkansas next season.
Glasser, the No. 285 pick and the first to be taken off the board in the 10th round by the Washington Nationals, is the first Indiana shortstop selection since 2010 and the highest-drafted Hoosier shortstop since Brian Harris was taken in the eighth round in 1997.
Glasser played his first three collegiate seasons at Youngstown State University from 2019-2021, earning Horizon League All-Freshman Team honors. Glasser, who is from Ohio, transferred to Indiana for the 2022 season and batted .346 in 47 games. At Youngstown State in 2021 and Indiana in 2023, Glasser was named one of the 25-to-30 semifinalists for the Brooks Wallace Award, given annually to the nation’s most outstanding collegiate shortstop.
In 2023, Glasser started all 63 games mostly in the lead-off spot of the lineup, walked more times than he struckout and raised his average 11 points in 78 more at-bats. The shortstop’s 45-game reached-base streak was tied for the longest by an Indiana player since 2005.
Following Indiana’s elimination in the NCAA Tournament on June 5, head coach Jeff Mercer consoled Glasser in the dugout. Mercer that night said that’s one of the worst parts of coaching and the shortstop gave his heart for the team. Mercer also revealed Glasser turned down the draft multiple times in his career. Five weeks to that day, Glasser, who no longer had college eligibility, was taken by the Nationals. His approximate pick value is $172,100.
The third and final day of the 2023 MLB Draft – which were Rounds 11-20 – concluded Tuesday afternoon shortly before 5:30 p.m. EST. Yoho and Glasser stood as the lone Hoosiers drafted this year. All selections can be found online using the MLB Draft Tracker.
