Paul Covelle Selected by Seattle Mariners on Third Day of MLB Draft
RINDGE, N.H. (June 11, 2016) – Senior right-hander Paul Covelle (Medford, Mass.) of the East Region champion Franklin Pierce University baseball team was selected on Saturday afternoon by the Seattle Mariners in the 27th round (807 overall) of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. Covelle will likely report to either the Mariners' Class A Short-Season, Northwest League affiliate, the Everett AquaSox, or the franchise's Rookie Level, Arizona League affiliate, the AZL Mariners.
Franklin Pierce has now had 28 draft selections in program history, beginning with Justin Blood in 2001. Since that first selection, only Boston College (49) and Connecticut (44) have had more draftees among New England schools, regardless of division. The Ravens have now had players selected in 14 of the last 16 MLB Drafts, with 2012 and 2015 being the lone empty years since Blood's selection in 2001. Covelle's selection, added to the selection of Jay Jabs in the 17th round earlier in the day, gave Franklin Pierce the sixth multiple-pick Draft in program history (2013, 2011, 2007, 2006, 2005).
In becoming the 28th draft pick in school history, Covelle became the fifth Franklin Pierce player drafted by the Mariners. Mike Dowd was the most recent Raven taken by the Mariners, as he was selected in the 12th round (363 overall) in 2011, topped out at Double-A over five seasons of affiliated ball and is currently playing for the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League. Scott Savastano was taken in the 28th round (852 overall) by Seattle in 2008 and reached Triple-A, while Keith Renaud was selected in the 10th round (315 overall) in 2007 and reached as high as the Class A Advanced level. Blood was the first Raven ever taken by the Mariners, in the ninth round (279 overall) in 2001, and he reached as high as Class A Advanced as well.
"Paul really stepped up this year to anchor our staff," said head coach Jayson King of Covelle. "He worked very hard to perform at the top of our rotation. His success was a direct reflection of our success as a team."
Pitching from the top of the rotation all spring, Covelle -- who capped his career with his first-ever All-America selection this spring -- logged 96.1 innings over 15 starts and struck out 93 (8.69 per nine innings), on his way to a 1.96 ERA and a 10-2 record with four complete games. Covelle allowed 27 runs (21 earned) on 62 hits and walked 15. Through the East Regional, he ranked third in the country in WHIP (0.75), sixth in hits allowed per nine innings (5.34), 14th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.20), tied for 14th in wins, 15th in ERA and 31st in walks allowed per nine innings (1.43). Within the NE-10, Covelle is ranked first in innings pitched, tied for second in wins and complete games, ranked third in ERA and strikeouts and ranked 11th in strikeouts per nine innings.
The Ravens (48-9) captured the seventh NCAA Regional title in program history on May 23, with a 6-3 win over Southern New Hampshire. The Ravens also claimed their fifth straight Northeast-10 Conference Northeast Division title during the 2016 campaign. Over 109 games since the start of the 2015 season, Franklin Pierce owns a 96-13 record (.881), which is the best winning percentage in the nation in that timeframe.
For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce baseball apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).