The Denver-area product is headed home to play for the Rockies.
With the No. 556 pick, the Colorado Rockies selected Texas Longhorns redshirt senior third baseman Skyler Messinger in the 19th round of the 2022 MLB Draft on Tuesday.
19 (566): @Rockies select Texas (TX) 3B Skyler Messinger https://t.co/qMJxc9fT6n #MLBDraft
— MLB Draft Tracker (@MLBDraftTracker) July 19, 2022
The selection marks a return home for the Niwot native who grew up a Rockies fan whose favorite player was former Texas volunteer assistant Troy Tulowitzki.
After spending four productive seasons at Kansas, Messinger wasn’t selected in the 2021 MLB Draft and transferred to Texas to work under Tulowitzki. The decision paid off for the 6’3, 220-pounder, who had an outstanding season on the Forty Acres, batting .364, a career high, and hitting 11 home runs, almost double the six home runs he hit in his entire time with the Jayhawks, thanks to a swing-plane adjustment.
The power surge from Messinger combined with his contact ability and .971 fielding percentage in 2022 to make him a draftable prospect for the first time since 2017 when he was coming out of high school.
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