June 9, 2010
LOS ANGELES, Calif. - Senior Xavier Esquivel became the third Lion drafted in the 2010 Major League Baseball draft on Wednesday when the San Diego Padres selected the right-hander with the 1,024th overall pick in the 34th round. Esquivel joins Matt Koch (671st overall in 22nd round by Tampa Bay) and Martin Viramontes (835th overall in 27th round by New York) as Lion players taken in this year's draft.
Esquivel appeared in 19 games for the Lions this year, starting three. The native of Chino, Calif. amassed a 2-4 record with a 7.43 ERA in 46 innings of work. Averaging just under one strikeout per inning pitched, he punched-out 40 batters and walked 14. A career-high seven strikeouts came in a five-inning relief effort against UC Riverside on April 21.
Used in relief virtually his entire four-year career at LMU, Esquivel finished his senior season ranked tied for eighth in career appearances (85) and seventh in career saves (7). He posted a career-best five saves in 2009, placing tied for ninth in the LMU single season record book for that category.
