Professional Birdballers
Follow former Eagles from the Heights to the Majors. Since 2019, a total of 24 former BC baseball players were active in professional baseball. Three Eagles have reached the big leagues since 2018 as Chris Shaw (Giants), Justin Dunn (Mariners) and Michael King (Yankees) all made it to their big league club in 2018 or 2019.
43 MLB ALUMNI • 86 MLB DRAFT PICKS • 6 FIRST ROUND PICKS
A total of 43 former Boston College baseball players have made it to the show. Longtime BC head coach Eddie Pellagrini spent eight seasons in the majors from 1946-1954, including his first two seasons playing alongside Ted Williams on the Boston Red Sox. Pellagrini, primarily a second baseman, played in 536 MLB games for five organizations. He made his Major League debut on April 22, 1946 and became just the 20th player in MLB history to hit a home run in his first career at-bat.
Beginning with Chris Lambert, a 2004 first round pick and the Eagles' all-time leader in strikeouts, making his debut in 2008, nine former BC players have made it to the show in the last 13 seasons. Joe Martinez and Tony Sanchez, the 2009 No. 4 overall pick of the Pirates, each spent parts of four seasons in the bigs. Mike Belfiore, a first round pick of the Diamondbacks, made his debut in 2013. Eric Campbell, who spent 2019 in Triple-A with the Oakland Athletics, had a three-year stint with the New York Mets from 2014-2016. Pat Dean then followed with his debut for the Minnesota Twins in 2016.
On Aug. 31, 2018, Chris Shaw became the first player from Mike Gambino's head coaching tenure to reach the big leagues. A former first round pick, he debuted for the San Francisco Giants with a go-ahead sacrifice-fly in the seventh inning that proved to score the winning run. In just over one year, Shaw was joined in the majors by his former BC teammates Justin Dunn and Michael King. Dunn and King each received a September call-up in 2019. Dunn, who arrived in Seattle by way of a trade from the Mets for MLB All-Stars Robinson Cano and Edwin Diaz, debuted against the Reds on Sept. 12 and finished the season starting four games for the Mariners. In the final week of the season, King, who rose through the minor league ranks after being traded to New York in November of 2017 and missed most of 2019 due to injury, pitched for the Yankees in Texas in the final week of the regular season on Sept. 27.
BC and the MLB Draft
Since the Major League Baseball first-year player draft started in 1965, 86 Eagles have been selected over the last 56 years. Gary Matz, a second round pick of the Minnesota Twins became the first BC player drafted in 1968. At least one Eagle has been selected in each draft since 2014. Catcher Tony Sanchez became the highest drafted BC player in 2009 as the fourth overall pick by the Pittsburgh Pirates after leading the Eagles to the NCAA Regionals.
Right-handed pitcher Chris Lambert became Boston College's first-ever first round pick as he was taken 19th overall by the St. Louis Cardinals in 2004. In program history, five players have been selected in the first round.
A program-record six players were drafted in 2010. Right-handed pitcher Pat Dean was the first Eagle off the board as a third-round pick of the Twins. In 2016, BC sent five players through the MLB Draft, which is tied with 2004 and 2005 for the second most in a season by Boston College. That year, right-handed pitcher Justin Dunn was selected 19th overall in the first round by the New York Mets just one year after teammate Chris Shaw was taken 31st overall in the first round by the San Francisco Giants in 2015. Sal Frelick became the latest first-rounder from BC in 2021 when Milwaukee selected him 15th overall.
2022: Former Birdballers in the Pros
| Player | Level | Team (Org.) | Pos. | At BC |
| Jake Alu | Double-A | Harrisburg Senators (WSN) | IF | 2016-19 |
| Donovan Casey | Triple-A | Rochester Red Wings (WSN) | OF | 2015-17 |
| Justin Dunn*# | MLB | Cincinnati Reds | RHP | 2014-16 |
| Sal Frelick | Double-A | Biloxi Shuckers (MIL) | OF | 2019-21 |
| Max Gieg | Low-A | Inland Empire 66ers (LAA) | RHP | 2020-22 |
| Matt Gill# | High-A | Dayton Dragons (CIN) | RHP | 2017-19 |
| Luke Gold | Low-A | Lakeland Tigers (DET) | 2B | 2020-22 |
| Michael King* | MLB | New York Yankees | RHP | 2014-16 |
| Joe Mancini | Unassigned | (HOU) | RHP | 2019-22 |
| Cody Morissette | High-A | Beloit Sky Carp (MIA) | IF | 2019-21 |
| Jake Palomaki | Triple-A | Salt Lake Bees (LAA) | IF | 2015-18 |
| Mason Pelio | Rookie | ACL Reds (CIN) | RHP | 2019-22 |
| Emmet Sheehan | High-A | Great Lakes Loons (LAD) | RHP | 2019-21 |
| Joe Suozzi | High-A | Brooklyn Cyclones (NYM) | OF | 2018-20 |
| Joey Walsh | Single-A | Inland Empire 66ers (LAA) | LHP | 2018-21 |
* - Indicates MLB experience.
# - Indicates disabled list.
