Jung Drafted Eighth Overall by the Texas Rangers

Texas Tech baseball’s Josh Jung was taken by the Texas Rangers with the No. 8 pick of the 2019 Major League Baseball Draft on Monday night.

The San Antonio, Texas, native becomes the second first-round pick in program history, joining outfielder Donald Harris, who was selected No. 5 overall by the Texas Rangers in 1989.

Jung’s selection is the 41^st under head coach Tim Tadlock over seven seasons. He is the seventh Tech infielder taken since 2013.

The junior has racked up 250 career hits over his Red Raider career, starting 184 of a possible 186 games in three seasons. The Big 12 Co-Player of the Year has tallied 34 extra base hits, including 11 home runs and 22 doubles, while recording 53 RBI and 59 runs scored.

Jung is one of the most decorated student-athletes ever to don the scarlet & black. He earned the 10^th All-America award of his career last week, receiving second team honors from Collegiate Baseball Newspaper. He was named a Golden Spikes Award and a Dick Howser Trophy semifinalist each of the last two seasons.

Defensively, Jung has made the transition from third base to shortstop look effortless. Over the last 26 games, he has helped solidify the middle infield with just two errors in 128 chances. Since the move, the Red Raiders have gone 20-6 to capture the Big 12 Championship, the No. 8 National Seed and a berth in the NCAA Super Regionals.

Jung’s sophomore season was one for the books, as he led the Big 12 in batting (.392), hits (103) and RBI (80). His hit total ranked third nationally, his RBI total was fourth and his .392 average was 12^th. He also completed the sixth cycle in Texas Tech history on April 21, 2018 at New Mexico.

For his career, Jung is hitting .347 with 91 extra-base hits. His 53 doubles currently ranks seventh in school history, while his 250 hits ranks fourth and his 176 RBI ranks fifth. He has also flashed discipline at the plate, with 126 career walks, which is just 14 behind the school record.

The Red Raiders continue their season this weekend in the NCAA Super Regionals against No. 9 Oklahoma State on Friday at 2 PM.