June 7, 2005

Mizzou outfielder James Boone, right-handed pitcher Andrew Johnston and right-handed pitcher Doug Mathis were selected in Day One of the 2005 Major League Baseball First-Year Players Draft on Tuesday. Boone was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the third round with the 91st overall pick, while Johnston was drafted in the ninth round by the Colorado Rockies with the 267th overall pick and Mathis was taken by the Texas Rangers in the 13th round with pick number 399.

Boone led Missouri with a .340 batting average this season and his 72 RBI on the year are the fifth most in school history. He was second on the team with eight home runs and was 14-for-16 in stolen base attempts. Boone was named to the All-Big 12 Conference First Team and was selected to the All-Big 12 Tournament Team. He led the team with 18 multi-RBI games, including three games with five or more runs batted in.

Johnston made a team-high 29 appearances for the Tigers this season and tied for the team lead with four saves. He was an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selection in his first season with Missouri. He had a 2.95 ERA in 58.0 innings pitched. He struck out 42 batters, while walking just 16 on the year. Johnston pitched at least three innings in relief in seven of his 29 appearances.

Mathis was 5-4 on the season, starting 11 games and appearing in 21. He had a 3.27 ERA in 77.0 innings pitched and struck out 67 batters. He recorded his first win as a Tiger with five shutout innings against Illinois State on March 9. Mathis gave up just one run on four hits against Kansas State to take his second victory and picked up another win as he struck out eight and allowed two runs against Texas A&M on April 10.

This marks the second-consecutive season that Missouri has had a player taken in the third round of the draft. Last year, Danny Hill was selected by the Toronto Blue Jays with the 87th pick overall. Prior to that, the last player selected in the top three rounds was Dave Silvestri in the second round of the 1988 draft.