Siena’s Dan Paolini Drafted By Seattle In 10th Round Of MLB Draft [AUDIO]

At about 3:30pm on Tuesday, Dan Paolini heard his named called in the Major League Baseball Draft.

The Seattle Mariners took the Siena College 2nd baseman in the 10th round (he was the 303rd overall pick).

Paolini finished his career with a .380 career batting average and 56 home runs, both program records. It was the 56 long balls in just three seasons that earned him national recognition as one of the top power hitters in all of college baseball.

Paolini was named a Second Team All-American by Collegiate Baseball in 2010 after leading the nation with .49 home runs per game.  He became  the only Siena student-athlete ever to be tabbed to an All-American Team at the Division I level.  He was selected MAAC Rookie of the Year as a freshman, and MAAC Player of the Year as a sophomore and junior.

This year, he helped the Saints reach the MAAC title game, belting 19 home runs and breaking his own single-season RBI record with 67.

Should he sign with Seattle, Paolini would become the 34th player in program history to ink a professional contract. He is the 12th Siena player elected in Major League Baseball’s First Year Player’s Draft in the last 15 years. 

Paolini will attempt to join Billy Harrell (Cleveland Indians), Gary Holle (Texas Rangers), Tim Christman (Colorado Rockies) and John Lannan (Washington Nationals) in becoming the fifth player to reach the highest level.

Today on "Sound-off with Sinkoff", Paolini talked to Brian Sinkoff about his big day.  Listen to the interview below.