Two Saints — and several more — have the chance to go marching into professional baseball.
Four more Jacksonville-area ballplayers, two from Sandalwood High School, received the call during the second day of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, which concluded July 12 in Philadelphia.
Current Sandalwood senior Bane Barker and Sandalwood graduate Dakota Stone, now pitching at the University of North Florida, joined Bishop Snyder High School senior Cody Boshell and former Bartram Trail High School pitcher Ashton Pocol on the list of selections in the 20-round draft.
Boshell, a combination pitcher and first baseman at Bishop Snyder, came off the board in the 11th round at No. 326 to the Arizona Diamondbacks. In 2026, he batted .284 with five doubles, three home runs, 16 RBI and a .920 OPS, while finishing 4-2 with a 2.53 earned run average and 67 strikeouts on the mound.
Boshell, who hit 16 home runs during his four years at Bishop Snyder, now faces the decision whether to sign with the Diamondbacks or to proceed to college baseball at Tennessee, the 2024 College World Series champion.
He became the second Bishop Snyder selection of the weekend, after the Atlanta Braves selected senior pitcher Cole Dennis in the fourth round on July 11.
![Sandalwood baseball pitcher Bane Barker is pictured at Spring Sports Media Day in Jacksonville on Feb. 17, 2026. [Clayton Freeman/Florida Times-Union]](https://media.zenfs.com/en/the-florida-times-union/90af239287bbc46711d135ef2a70b745)
The Miami Marlins followed by selecting Barker in the 12th round at No. 355. The 6-8, 235-pound right-handed pitcher excelled in his senior year at Sandalwood with a 1.40 ERA, 108 strikeouts in 60 innings and an 0.883 WHIP while batting .342 with six home runs, 20 RBI and a 1.067 OPS. Barker has previously committed to Gulf Coast State College.
In the 16th round, the Chicago Cubs selected Florida Gulf Coast reliever Pocol at No. 487. The right-hander struck out 50 batters this year while recording a 3-4 record, a 3.24 ERA and six saves to earn third-team All-ASUN honors. Pocol held opponents to a .204 batting average in his two seasons in Fort Myers.
UNF ace Stone, a left-handed pitcher, went to the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 20th round at No. 588 after his first-team All-ASUN season as a redshirt junior. He finished 7-3 with a 2.85 ERA, a 1.25 WHIP and 102 strikeouts for the Ospreys.
Counting Saturday’s selections of Dennis and Glynn Academy outfielder Wessley Roberson, a fourth-round Marlins selection, the Jacksonville area produced six draft picks overall in 2026.
Several of the area’s most prominent high school prospects, including outfielder Brady Harris of Trinity Christian and pitcher Brayden Harris of St. Johns Country Day, did not receive selections and are expected to compete in college baseball this spring. Brady Harris has signed with Florida and Brayden Harris is a Florida State signee.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Sandalwood High baseball pair among Jacksonville-area MLB Draft picks
