Hartselle High School pitcher and outfielder Garrett Wade has been drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 38^th round of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft, but he will be pitching for Auburn University instead.

Wade, the 2017-2018 Gatorade Alabama Baseball Player of the Year, led the Hartselle Tigers to the Class 6A state tournament with a 1.02 ERA and a 7-2 record. Wade signed a national letter of intent to play baseball at Auburn on scholarship, and he will enroll at Auburn in late June.

“Although I’m very thankful the Rays drafted me and (for) all the teams that reached out to me, my plans are to attend Auburn,” Wade said. “I’m very excited about my future at Auburn and getting to learn and grow as a player under Coach Thompson. I think we have a chance to be really good and competitive for the next few years, so it’s an exciting time to be a part of Auburn baseball.”

Wade will join former Decatur High School pitcher and 2016-2017 Gatorade Alabama Baseball Player of the Year award-winner Tanner Burns at Auburn. Wade, Burns and the Auburn Tigers will have to find a way to replace junior pitcher Casey Mize, who was selected as the first overall pick of the MLB draft.

“It was an awesome experience getting to go through the draft, and it’s a blessing because not many people are fortunate enough to go through that process,” Wade said. “Hopefully I’ll get to experience it again after three to four years at Auburn.”