Cubs select right-handed pitcher Ryan Jensen in first round of the 2019 MLB Draft

The Chicago Cubs tonight selected right-handed pitcher Ryan Jensen out of Fresno State University (Calif.) with the 27th overall pick in the 2019 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.

Jensen was recommended by area scout Gabe Zappin.

“Ryan is an athletic and competitive righthander with a big arm,” said Cubs Senior Vice President of Scouting and Player Development Jason McLeod. “He features a heavy sinker along with a swing and miss type fastball, and he closed out his junior season strong. We are excited to get him into a Cubs uniform.”

Jensen, 21, went 12-1 with a 2.88 ERA (32 ER/100.0 IP) in 16 appearances this season, striking out 107 batters while walking just 27. He has gone 9-0 with a 2.32 ERA (17 ER/66.0 IP) in his last nine starts, leading the Bulldogs to the NCAA regional final tonight vs. Stanford. He was named a second-team All-American by _Collegiate Baseball_, as well as the Mountain West Pitcher of the Year and Mountain West Tournament MVP.

The six-foot, 180-pound righty has gone 17-7 with a 4.42 ERA (104 ER/211.0 IP) in 63 appearances, including 27 starts, in three seasons at Fresno State. He has struck out 208 batters, while walking 99, in 211.0-career innings pitched.

A native of Salinas, California, Jensen graduated from Salinas Union High School where he posted a 2.75 ERA in 40.2 innings as a senior in 2016. He was ranked as the 16th-best right-handed pitcher in the Class of 2016 in California by Perfect Game.

The 2019 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft continues this evening with the Cubs owning the No. 64 pick in the second round. The draft continues tomorrow with rounds three-though-10 and concludes Wednesday with rounds 11-through-40.