With the fifth pick of the 2021 MLB draft the Baltimore Orioles selected Sam Houston State outfielder Colton Cowser. The club later signed him for $4.9 million. Here are five things you should know about the 21-year-old.
1. He put together an amazing college performance.
The 6-foot-3, 195-pound outfielder broke on to the college baseball scene in a big way as a freshman, hitting .361/.450/.602 with seven homers and 54 RBIs. He never got going as a sophomore during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, hitting .255/.379/.364 with one homer in just 14 games. However, Cowser really showed out as a junior. He hit .374/.490/.680 with 16 homers and 52 RBIs in 55 games played.
2. He has made history left and right so far.
Cowser is the highest pick in the history of Sam Houston State and the Southland Conference, but his name hit the history books at Cypress Ranch High School (Texas), too. Cowser is the highest pick in Cypress history since 2002, when pitcher Clint Everts went fifth overall. Cowser’s high school teammate Ty Madden, a right-hander out of Texas, was picked No. 32 by the Detroit Tigers.
3. He is part of a hopeful future in Charm City.
This is the third year the Orioles have used their first pick in the draft on a college hitter. They picked Oregon State catcher Adley Rutschman with the first overall pick in the 2019 draft and Arkansas outfielder Heston Kjarstad with the second pick in the shortened 2020 draft. All three players were drafted in the first five picks, giving Baltimore a promising future.
4. He mostly posts about Sam Houston State baseball on Twitter.
There are some athletes on social media who will comment on a variety of topics. Yet, Cowser does not seem to live on his social media accounts. All of his recent tweets are about the Sam Houston University baseball program and about how he was drafted by the Orioles. His Instagram also only has 14 posts. You can follow him on Twitter at @CowserColton and on Instagram at @Coltoncowser.
5. He is excited to be in Baltimore.
“I’ve dreamed about this, and my family’s invested a lot into me,” Cowser told the Baltimore media after being drafted by the Orioles July 7. “You know they’ve sacrificed all the time just to be able to spend it with friends and family means the worlds to me.”
He then tweeted the following after signing his contract:
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Sam Houston Athletics