A WVU baseball player from Mars could be the No. 1 pick in the MLB draft

MARS, Pa. (KDKA) -- In 2021, recruiting website Rivals.com rated JJ Wetherholt as the 225th best second baseman in his class. But after three successful seasons at West Virginia, he will likely be one of the first players selected in this year's MLB draft on July 16.

"People could be in a different phase in their career at an earlier age than you so some people getting picked out of high school were probably better than I was at that time," Wetherholt said. "But that's not a reason to stop. It's a reason to keep going and just believe in yourself and try to make those dreams come true."

While playing shortstop at Mars High School, those dreams probably didn't include being the top overall pick this year but several publications are predicting just that.

"Sure, being the first overall pick would be cool, but it's definitely not my area of focus," he said. "I just want to go to a team that wants me. At the end of the day, I just want to play pro baseball so whatever pick it is, I'll be happy."

If he's not selected No. 1, there's a chance he could end up sliding to the Pirates at pick No. 9.

"There have definitely been conversations [with them]," he said. "It would be amazing. I grew up a Pirates fan and went to a bunch of games. It would be a great scenario, I would love to go there but at the end of the day that's kind of not in my hands so we'll just see what happens, but that would be sweet."

Regardless of where he ends up, Wetherholt will join the Bednar brothers, David and Will, to form a trio of Fightin' Planet alums in professional baseball.

"That would be amazing," he said. "We've now produced some pretty good players out of Mars and it's huge for the school. It should kind of help people understand that we mean business over here and, yeah, if we could all get to the big leagues at the same time, it would honestly be unbelievable."

The other day, Wetherholt made the drive up from Mars to Cleveland to talk with the Guardians, who hold that top overall pick. He plans to attend the draft in person down in Fort Worth, Texas, along with his family and several coaches who helped mold him into the player he is today.