Cardinals draft Towson closer in 25th

With their 25th-round pick, the St. Louis Cardinals selected Towson closer Josh Squatrito in the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.

Squatrito said he and the rest of his family were overcome with emotions.

"Honestly, I was in tears with the rest of my family. I've wanted this for so long and it happened and it was a great feeling," he said.

However, Squatrito didn't immediately know which team had drafted him. He said he "didn't think the Cardinals were a team of interest" and had gotten a call from the Boston Red Sox in the 20th round of the draft, seeing if he was still available to sign.

"Five rounds went by and my name hadn't been called by the Red Sox," Squatrito said. "That was kind of what we were anticipating, so when we heard my name we had no clue what team it was."

Squatrito said he won't be signing until he gets to New York. He said he will be playing with the Batavia Muckdogs in Batavia, New York; the team is in the Pickney Division of the New York-Penn League.

In just two years at Towson, the CCBC-Catonsville transfer set school records for saves in a season and career saves, at 10 and 17, respectively. In his career with the Tigers, Squatrito posted a 7-7 record with 111 strikeouts.

Squatrito said his experience at Towson prepared him to play professionally.

"It's Division I baseball. You have a coach that's very experienced who's brutally honest with you. It's a good thing," he said. "Overall, being at Towson [and] being in a hitting conference has helped a lot."

Squatrito joins three other former Towson players currently playing professional baseball - 2005 draftees Casper Wells, who is in Detroit's system, and Shane Justis, who is in Los Angeles' system, and 2008 pick Brian Conley, who is in the Baltimore Orioles system.

Two other Towson players may go on to play professionally. Though second baseman Gary Helmick and catcher Jason Stifler were not drafted by any team, they were offered contracts with the Baltimore Orioles. Neither were available to comment.

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