It was an historic weekend for Cal Poly Baseball as seven Mustangs got called up to the big leagues.
Chris downs, Griffin Naess, Alejandro Garza, Nick Bonn, Ryan Tayman, Josh Volmerding, and Paso Robles native Carson Turnquist were all drafted into the MLB (Major League Baseball) this past weekend.
The seven players are just one short of the record eight draftees.
“That whole group wanted to get better," said Seth Moir, Cal Poly pitchers coach. "There was never a time when it shut down.”
This past season, the Mustangs made a run to the super regionals, and it was Turnquist’s first season back on the mound after Tommy John surgery, a common procedure for pitchers to restore joint function.
“Days where you’re, like, questioning if you’re going to be back like the same or there’s always those days with rehab, I think,” Turnquist said on his recovery.
But he made an impact once he got back on the mound, striking out 92 players and earning wins in seven straight starts.
“I think he just started to get more confident the more he threw, but I think he’s (a) very talented guy, so that was inevitable, but I think sometimes you have to prove it to yourself after being injured,” Moir said.
And now Turnquist will be heading to Arizona on Wednesday to join the Diamondbacks’ organization. He told KSBY News that he was in the living room with his family when he got the call.
“I was pretty happy with it, and I think my agent called me and told me what they offered me, and, and I was like, yeah, lets go," Turnquist said.
He added that he enjoyed the run that the Mustangs made this last season and looks forward to seeing his former teammates in the league.
“We played some really good teams, especially in that regional, and I think all these guys deserve it more than anything,” Turnquist said.
“Bittersweet with the draft because they’re moving on, but you also, like, really built the relationship over those three years, and it won’t be the same; it’ll be good, but it’ll never be the same, so yeah, it’s bittersweet," Moir said.
