Four BYU Cougars members selected in 2022 MLB Draft

July 21, 2022

Four members of the Brigham Young baseball team were selected in the Major League Baseball draft, which took place at the Xbox Plaza in LA on July 17-19.

The four players selected in the first 20 rounds tied the highest total in the program's history. It also tied the previous high set in 2002.

Andrew Pintar, a second baseman for the team, was selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the fifth round with the 138th overall pick. Cy Nielson, a left-handed pitcher, was picked by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the eighth round. Nate Dahle, a right-handed pitcher, was selected by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 13th round with the 404th overall pick. Cooper McKeehan, a left-handed pitcher from Brigham Young, was picked by the Kansas City Royals in the 16th round with the 475th pick.

Four BYU member's stats

In his first season with the Cougars in 2022, Pintar played only 17 games due to an injury. In 2021, he was named to the All-American team and the West Coast Conference's Co-Freshman of the Year. He was also one of only 13 players to be selected to the All-WCC First Team.

During the season, Pintar finished in the top 10 in the league in various offensive categories. He was named the West Coast Conference Player of the Week on May 10. He had a batting average of .362 and was tied for third with three triples and a home run.

The 21-year-old is the first Brigham Young baseball team member to be selected during the first five rounds of the Major League Baseball draft since Jacob Hannemann was picked by the Chicago Cubs in 2013. He's also the third member of the team to be selected by the D-backs, following Chris Capper and Adam Miller.

As a sophomore in 2022, Nielson appeared in 28 games for the team. He was able to go 3-0 with a 3.21 ERA. He was also named to the All-West Coast Conference's second team and the league's academic honor roll. The left-handed pitcher from Spanish Fork, Utah, struck out 45 batters in 33.2 innings. He was additionally named to the All-WCC Honorable mention list.

For the Pirates, it was the second time a team member from Brigham Young was selected. Vance Law, the head coach of the team, was also a former player for the program and was taken by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 2019 MLB draft.

In his first season with the team, Dahle appeared in 25 games and had a 2-4 record with two saves. The 6-foot-6 right-hander from Tremonton, Utah, finished the year with a 2.74 ERA. He also led the team with 61 Ks in 42.2 innings.

Dahle was named to the All-WCC Second Team after the season. He was the first team member from the program to be selected by the Tampa Bay organization.

In his second season with the team, McKeehan could go 2-1 with a 1.57 ERA. He appeared in 23 games and struck out 41 batters. The 6-foot-1, 195-pound right-hander from Matthews, North Carolina, was also able to limit the opposing team to a .160 batting average.

Following the season, McKeenhan was named to the All-WCC Second Team. The commissioner's honor roll was also recognized for his academic achievements. McKeehan became the third member of the program to be selected by the Kansas City organization in the MLB draft, following Dave Jensen and Clifford Pastornicky in 2002.

Jake
Jake Williams
Jake Williams is a sports gambling expert. He's been writing in the sports betting and DFS industry for over a decade. He specializes in MLB and NBA, along with College Basketball and College Football.