LOS ANGELES – Saint Mary's Baseball had two more players selected on day three of the 2022 MLB Draft with Sam Bower and Chris Santiago each being picked on the draft's final day.
 
Bower was limited to 10.1 innings this season due to a shoulder injury, but was still selected by the San Francisco Giants in the 11th round at 346th overall. Even though Bower only made three appearances, he still put up a 3.48 ERA in that time while striking out 11 batters to three walks. He was one of the five pitchers named to the WCC's Preseason All-Conference Team after going 4-5 with a 3.43 ERA in 2021.
 
The Visalia, Calif. native had some dominant outings in 2021, including his start against Portland on April 2 when he threw 108 pitches over eight innings and allowed just two runs in a 14-2 victory. He also shut out Cal Baptist over 7.1 innings and held San Diego scoreless over seven innings. Bower notched seven quality starts in '21 with 59 strikeouts to just 13 walks in 81.1 innings.
 

Staying in the Bay!@SFGiants select our guy Sam Bower in the 11th round of the #MLBDraft! #GaelsRise pic.twitter.com/FwKZTcmygE

— Saint Mary's Baseball (@SMC_Baseball) July 19, 2022

 
In '21 Bower led the Gaels in innings pitched (81.1), WHIP (0.93), and fewest walks per nine innings (1.44). His is .209 opponent's batting average was the lowest among Gael starting pitchers and he went at least six innings in eight of his 14 starts. In his first five starts at Saint Mary's, he threw 34.1 innings while allowing just four earned runs (1.05 ERA), 15 hits, and two walks with 24 strikeouts.
 
Even with the injury limiting Bower to three games in 2022, he stayed very involved in the clubhouse according to Head Coach Greg Moore.
 
"Sam was a leader in the clubhouse all year as he battled injury," Moore said. "He never stopped working."
 
Santiago was drafted by the New York Mets in the 18th round, 539th overall. He was a two-way player for SMC, leading the team in home runs (10), RBI (31), total bases (95), and tied for the team lead in hits (52) in 2022 while playing first and third base.
 

Big Slugger + Big Arm = Big Apple@Mets take Chris Santiago in the 18th round of the #MLBDraft! #GaelsRise pic.twitter.com/0aKgrlZy2U

— Saint Mary's Baseball (@SMC_Baseball) July 19, 2022

 
The De La Salle High product also pitched 20 innings for the Gaels last season, finishing with a 4.50 ERA and improved with each outing as the year went on. He went five-straight appearances and seven of his last eight out of the bullpen without allowing a run. Santiago made his first collegiate start and threw three hitless innings on May 19 against CSUN this past season before the Matadors scored a pair of runs.
 
"Chris keeps getting better as he learns to pitch," Moore said. "He had some great outings for us late in the year."
 
It was the same story at the plate at the end of the 2021 season as he finished strong that season as well, hitting .322 over his final nine games of the season, including his first-ever three-hit game (also scored four times) against Santa Clara on May 23 of 2021.
 
Saint Mary's had a total of three players selected in the 2022 MLB Draft including Christopher Campos who was selected in the seventh round of the draft by the Dodgers.