Ten Aflac All-Americans Selected in First Round of 2008 MLB First-Year Player Draft, Including Four of the First Six Picks
June 05 2008 - 7:29PM
PR Newswire (US)
Tim Beckham, MVP of 2007 Aflac All-American Game, Becomes Third
Aflac All- American Selected #1 Overall COLUMBUS, Ga., June 5
/PRNewswire/ -- Tim Beckham, the MVP of the 2007 Aflac All-American
High School Baseball Game, led a parade of 10 former Aflac
All-American baseball players selected in the first round of
today's Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. Beckham is
the third Aflac All- American to be selected #1 overall (Justin
Upton in 2005, Matt Bush in 2004), and the first #1 pick to have
been the MVP of the Aflac Game. Since the game's inception in 2003,
52 Aflac All-American alumni have been selected in the first round
of the Major League Baseball first-year player draft, including
current major leaguers Homer Bailey of the Cincinnati Reds and
Justin Upton of the Arizona Diamondbacks. The 2008 draft saw 10
Aflac All-Americans drafted in the first round, including Eric
Hosmer (No. 3 overall to the Kansas City Royals), Buster Posey (No.
4 overall to the San Francisco Giants) and Kyle Skipworth (No. 5
overall to the Florida Marlins). Also, Ike Davis, the No. 18 pick
by the New York Mets, was the MVP of the 2004 Aflac All-American
Game. Overall, 143 of 192 Aflac All-Americans have been drafted by
Major League teams. The annual Aflac All-American High School
Baseball Game showcases 38 of the nation's top high school players
in an East versus West matchup following their junior year. Aflac
All-Americans are chosen by the experts at our official selection
partner, Perfect Game USA, and in consultation with the staff at
baseball's most influential magazine, Baseball America. "Today's
MLB Draft once again illustrates the quality of talent on display
at the Aflac All-American Game, with our MVP selected No. 1 overall
and four of the top six players drafted," said Al Johnson, Vice
President, Marketing Services, Aflac. "We wish Tim Beckham and the
others the best of luck as they start their pro careers, and we'll
be proud to look back one day and say they've worn an Aflac
All-American jersey. Aflac All-American players drafted in today's
first round included: No. 1 - Tim Beckham, SS, Griffin, Ga. - Tampa
Bay Rays No. 3 - Eric Hosmer, 1B/OF, Plantation, Fla. - Kansas City
Royals No. 5 - Buster Posey, C, Florida State - San Francisco
Giants (from 2004 Aflac Game) No. 6 - Kyle Skipworth, C, Rubidoux,
Calif. - Florida Marlins No. 13 - Brett Wallace, 3B, Arizona State
- St. Louis Cardinals (from 2004 Aflac Game) No. 14 - Aaron Hicks,
RHP/OF, Long Beach, Calif. - Minnesota Twins No. 15 - Ethan Martin,
RHP/3B, Toccoa, Ga. - Los Angeles Dodgers No. 18 - Ike Davis, 1B,
Arizona State - New York Mets (from 2004 Aflac Game) No. 28 -
Gerrit Cole, RHP, Santa Ana, Calif. - New York Yankees No. 40 -
Brett Devall, LHP, Niceville, Fla. - Atlanta Braves (supplemental
first round) About Aflac For more than 50 years, Aflac products
have given policyholders the opportunity to direct cash where it is
needed most when a life-interrupting medical event causes financial
challenges. Aflac is the number one provider of
guaranteed-renewable insurance in the United States and the number
one insurance company in terms of individual insurance policies in
force in Japan. Our insurance products provide protection to more
than 40 million people worldwide. Aflac has been included in
Fortune magazine's listing of America's Most Admired Companies for
seven consecutive years and in Fortune magazine's list of the 100
Best Companies to Work For in America for nine consecutive years.
Aflac has also been recognized three times by both Fortune
magazine's listing of the Top 50 Employers for Minorities and
Working Mother magazine's listing of the 100 Best Companies for
Working Mothers. Aflac Incorporated is a Fortune 500 company listed
on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol AFL. To find out
more about Aflac, visit aflac.com . (Logo:
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20041202/CLTH019LOGO ) Media
Contacts (Photos Available): Tim Turner Jeff Heckelman Aflac
Incorporated Edelman Sports 706-243-5594 212-642-7718
http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20041202/CLTH019LOGO
http://photoarchive.ap.org/ DATASOURCE: Aflac Incorporated CONTACT:
Tim Turner, Aflac Incorporated, +1-706-243-5594, ; Jeff Heckelman,
Edelman Sports, +1-212-642-7718, Web site: http://www.aflac.com/
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