Jonathon Crawford might have thrown his last pitch as a Gator.
The Detroit Tigers took the junior right-hander with the 20th pick in the first round of Major League Baseball’s First-Year Player Draft on Thursday night.
Crawford was the third Gator selected in the first round in the past two seasons and is the highest Florida pitcher taken since John Burke went sixth to the Houston Astros in 1991.
Crawford struggled with consistency in 2013, going 3-6 with a 3.84 ERA and striking out 69 batters in 86.2 innings.
The junior was the ninth pitcher selected on Thursday.
Crawford has until July 15 to sign with Detroit. If the two sides don’t come to an agreement by then, Crawford can return to Florida for his last season of eligibility.
Should Crawford sign with the Tigers, he will finish his Gators career with a 9-8 record and a 3.54 ERA in 168 innings.
Crawford was the only Florida player to be selected on the first day of the MLB Draft, but a possible future Gator also went in the first round.
The San Francisco Giants selected Christian Arroyo, a shortstop out of Brooksville Hernando High School, 25th overall. Arroyo committed to Florida on April 23, 2012.
Also selected on the first night of the draft was Gators commit Tyler Danish. The Valrico Durant High School senior went 55th overall to the Chicago White Sox. He did not allow an earned run in his senior season.
The draft continues with Rounds 3-10 on Friday at 12:30 p.m.
Contact Adam Lichtenstein at alichtenstein@alligator.org.
Right-hander Jonathon Crawford throws a pitch during Florida’s 8-2 loss to Florida Gulf Coast on Feb 22 at McKethan Stadium. Selected 20th by the Detroit Tigers in the first round of the MLB Draft on Thursday, Crawford is the highest Florida pitcher taken since John Burke went sixth to the Houston Astros in 1991.
