With the 18th pick in the 8th round (242nd overall), the Kansas City Royals made their 11th straight college selection to open the draft and picked outfielder Jackson Lueck from Florida State University.

Height:  6′           Weight:  185 lbs          Throws:  Right           Bats:  Switch

Rankings:

• Perfect Game:  319th overall
• Baseball America: 214th overall

Jackson Lueck has had an interesting journey as a player.  Starting as a prep catcher, Lueck was moved to the outfield to work his bat into the line up that featured fellow classmate and draftee, Cal Raleigh.  In his first two seasons with the Seminoles, Lueck put up outstanding numbers.  His freshman season saw him slash .379/.494/.578.  In his sophomore campaign he saw a bit more action and the numbers dipped but they were still very encouraging (.318/.405/.502).  This past season Jackson saw an uptick in power, but his slash line dipped and his strikeouts increased.

If Lueck can cut down on the strikeouts, he’s an intriguing bat for the Royals.  He doesn’t have great range or a great arm so his best position moving forward will be Left Field.  He’s a solid base runner but won’t offer much in the way of stolen bases.