Robinson and Lartigue Taken on Day Two of the MLB Draft

During the second day of the 2016 Major League Baseball Draft, two more Rebels heard their names called by professional ballclubs. The Los Angeles Dodgers used the 25th pick of the sixth round to select shortstop Errol Robinson, while catcher Henri Lartigue was chosen by the Philadelphia Phillies to begin the seventh round.

Robinson is the highest Ole Miss shortstop drafted since current Cincinnati Reds shortstop Zack Cozart was taken in the second round of the 2007 draft. Lartigue is the third Rebel catcher drafted in the last four seasons.

The pair brings the total number of Rebels drafted to three through the first 10 rounds. Last night, outfielder J.B. Woodman was picked up by the Toronto Blue Jays in round two.

Entering the 2016 campaign chosen as a Preseason All-American by MLB scouts, Robinson flashed the leather throughout the season at shortstop as he helped the Rebels turn 31 double plays. The Boyds, Maryland native finished his junior season with a .270 batting average, hitting over .300 the second half of the year. Over the past three seasons, Robinson made 185 starts at shortstop, missing just two games. He tallied 69 hits, 45 runs, 36 RBI and nine steals in 2016, all single season highs for his Rebel career.

Robinson led Ole Miss with four triples, while also smacking 10 doubles and one home run. Against Georgia (May 6), he nearly hit for the cycle in succession and was responsible for all six runs (four RBI, two runs scored) in the Rebels’ SEC road victory. One week later, we went 5-for-6 with four runs and three RBI versus Kentucky (May 13), becoming the first Rebel to record five hits in a game since Auston Bousfield in 2014. He also drove in four runs on four singles in the semifinals of the SEC Tournament (May 28).

In his first season as the Ole Miss starting catcher, Lartigue had a monster year. The Southaven, Mississippi native continued the tradition of superb catchers at Ole Miss, earning First Team All-SEC honors and becoming a semifinalist for the 2016 Johnny Bench Award, an award given to the nation’s top catcher in collegiate baseball. Lartigue paced the Rebels in hitting with a .353 batting average to rank fifth in the SEC and lead all conference catchers. The switch hitter had 19 multi-hit games, including 12 with at least three hits which led the team. The next closest Rebels had only four games with three or more hits.

Lartigue had two of the Rebels’ biggest hits of the season, completing a pair of comeback walk-off victories. Against Auburn (April 24), his base hit in the Rebels’ four-run ninth inning capped a 6-5 victory. Facing Kentucky, Lartigue walked to the dish with runners on the corners, one out and his team trailing by one in the final frame. Coming through in the clutch once again, the Ole Miss catcher belted a deep fly ball to right field that cleared the fence for a three-run home run, giving the Rebels a 7-5 win and earning his second walk-off hit of the season.

The 2016 MLB Draft concludes tomorrow (June 11) with rounds 11-40. For the latest news and updates involving Ole Miss Baseball, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissBSB, on Facebook at Ole Miss Baseball and on Instagram at olemissbsb.

Courtesy of Ole Miss Sports