With the 31st overall pick in the 2011 Major League Baseball Draft, the Tampa Bay Rays selected LSU Mikie Mahtook with the hopes of bringing in a good mixture speed and power into their minor league farm system.

It was a long wait on the board for the star centerfielder, who was projected to go as high as the 9th pick in some mock drafts. When his name was finally called by MLB Commissioner Bud Selig, it was the Rays second of 10 picks they had in the first and compensatory rounds.

Mahtook – who was drafted out of high school in the 39th round by the Florida Marlins – was the first position player selected by Tampa Bay, with the Rays taking right-handed pitcher Taylor Guerrieri with the 24th pick of the first round.

“He is a true centerfielder,” said MLB Network Analyst Harold Reynolds. “He has range and is going to hit. You watch the way he swings, the way he defends and he put it up in a big conference with weak bats. He stands out more so than a lot of other college players that were taken before him.”

In his junior season with LSU, Mahtook led the Tigers in nearly every offensive category. Starting in all 56 games, he hit for a .383 average with 14 home runs, 56 runs batted in and also stole 29 bases.

In the outfield, he recorded 145 put outs and was second on the team only to Mason Katz in fielding percentage at .993.

“The thing about Mahtook that jumps out for me is the intangibles,” commented MLB Network Analyst John Hart. “He plays the game hard. He is a relentless player and I see him as a solid, average, every day player that is going to help the club.”

Mahtook made a name for himself as a true freshman out of Lafayette starting with his first career home run – a towering shot over the right field scoreboard. He produced in the postseason as well with go ahead RBI’s in game 1 and game 3 of the 2009 College World Series, catapulting the Tigers to their sixth national championship.

Through his three years at LSU he has compiled a long list of accolades, getting named to the SEC All-Freshman, All-Tournament, and Tournament MVP in 2009. He was again apart of the SEC All-Tournament team in 2010 and was received preseason All-American honors this year.

He is also a semi-finalist for the 2011 Golden-Spikes award.

For his career at LSU, Mahtook batted a .344 lifetime average, and he ranks second in school history with 12 triples and fifth amongst all Tigers with 60 stolen bases.