Pat Burrell - College

College

After graduating from high school in 1995, Burrell was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 43rd round of the 1995 Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft. Instead of signing, he chose to attend the University of Miami, where he played third base and was a teammate of Aubrey Huff. As a freshman, he was selected as a First-Team All-American by Baseball America and the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper. He was also named the Most Outstanding Player of the 1996 College World Series, joining Dave Winfield and Phil Nevin as the only players to win the award without winning the series. In his sophomore year, he was again named a First-Team All-American by Baseball America and the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper but also by the Sporting News this year. He was named Baseball America's Summer Player of the year in 1997. In 1998, as a junior, he won the Golden Spikes Award as the best player in college baseball. That year, he was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies with the first overall pick in the 1998 MLB Draft. Burrell finished his college career with 61 home runs, 187 runs batted in (RBI), and 170 walks in 162 games. His .442 batting average was seventh all-time by an NCAA player, and his slugging percentage of .888 was second only to Pete Incaviglia. In February 2008, Burrell was inducted into the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame.