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Thursday, March 28, 2024
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UB outfielder Nick Sinay drafted by Toronto Blue Jays

Outfielder taken in 22nd round, fourth Bull to be drafted in as many years

<p>Senior outfielder Nick Sinay (pictured) was selected in the 22nd round by the Toronto Blue Jays in the MLB Amateur Draft. </p>

Senior outfielder Nick Sinay (pictured) was selected in the 22nd round by the Toronto Blue Jays in the MLB Amateur Draft. 

Buffalo senior outfielder Nick Sinay was selected by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 22nd round of the MLB Amateur Draft on Wednesday.

Sinay is the third Bull to be drafted in the last two years, joining former teammates Tyler Mautner and Mike Burke, who were selected by the Minnesota Twins and the Baltimore Orioles, last year respectively. It is the fourth consecutive year a player from Buffalo has been drafted.

Sinay is revered for his speed despite a back injury that nearly derailed his baseball career at a young age. This past season, he set a new school record for most stolen bases in a season (39) and also set the mark for the most in program history (72). Bob Amico previously held the single-season record.

“He’s been blessed with some serious athletic ability,” Burke said. “He’s one of the strongest in the weight room and he’s one of the fastest out there. I knew it was going to happen for him eventually.”

Burke, who is currently playing for the Single-A Delmarva Shorebirds in the Orioles farm system, was Sinay’s teammate for two seasons at Buffalo. Burke said Sinay is one of the fastest players he’s ever played with and playing defense against him is “scary.” Burke vividly remembers wind sprint relays, where he would take a substantial head start, only to be trailing Sinay by the end of the race.

“He beat out a ton of infield hits,” Burke said regarding their playing days together. “He was blessed with some serious speed.”

Head coach Ron Torgalski told The Spectrum last April that professional scouts “loved [Sinay's] quickness around the base path” and has clocked his 60-yard dash at 6.3 seconds.

Sinay also had a team-high .326 batting average, amassed a .964 fielding percentage and was named to the All-Mid-American Conference team and the All-MAC Defensive team to cap off a stellar junior season.

Sinay is the 31st Bull to be selected in the MLB Draft and the third since 1980 to be drafted by the nearby Blue Jays - who's Triple-A affiliate are the Buffalo Bisons. He is the seventh player since 2005 to be selected from Buffalo. 

Burke said it isn’t an easy task to be drafted, but believes Sinay earned the accomplishment. Burke said Sinay should enjoy the moment for now, but not forget what lies ahead.

"He should take it all in and enjoy it,” Burke said. “But when you get down there, it’s business. Don’t get caught up. It’s not like, ‘alright, I made it, time to slack off.’ No, it’s time to work even harder. But as of right now, he’s work hard all his life for this. Just enjoy the moment with friends and family.”

Jordan Grossman is the co-senior sports editor and can be reached at jordan.grossman@ubspectrum.com 

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