ATLANTA, GA - LSU ace pitcher Kade Anderson had to wait a couple of picks longer than expected to hear his name called in the Major League Baseball 2025 Draft, but when it was done the Madisonville native was selected No. 3 overall in the first round by the Seattle Mariners on Sunday night in Atlanta, Georgia.

Watching from his house in Louisiana, Anderson became LSU's second top-three pick in the MLB Draft in three years following Paul Skenes in 2023 to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Anderson is just one of many current LSU Tigers to hear their names called over the course of the next two days and 20 rounds of the MLB Draft.

The second Tiger off the board was LSU pitcher Chase Shores who was taken in the second round with the No. 47 overall selection by the Los Angeles Angels.

Shores, a redshirt sophomore from Midland, Texas, was dominant for the Tigers out of the bullpen in late game situations throwing at times over 100 miles per hour off the mound.  Shores returned to the mound in 2025 after missing the 2024 season while rehabilitating from Tommy John surgery.

A pair of LSU Tigers were taken in the third round as the second part of the 1-2 pitching punch with Kade Anderson was picked with the 87th selection from the Boston Red Sox as RHP Anthony Eyanson became the next Tiger off the board.

Eyanson joined Anderson and Shores as the only LSU pitchers to throw in the College World Series Championship finals and also the only LSU pitchers to be drafted.

LSU outfielder Ethan Frey was the only position player taken from the current LSU roster as he was scooped up by the Houston Astros with the 95th pick overall. 

Frey going in the third round before any other LSU player was even more impressive considering his limited role as an oufielder and designated hitter.  Frey was invaluable to the LSU postseason run with key hits throughout the SEC and NCAA tournaments. 

Rounds 1-3 of the draft are being conducted Sunday evening in Atlanta. Rounds 4-20 will be held starting at 10:30 a.m. on Monday.

More from an LSU release on Anderson can be seen below:

Anderson, a sophomore from Madisonville, La., is the fourth LSU player in the last four seasons to be among the Top 5 overall MLB Draft selections.

The other LSU Top 5 picks since 2022 are right-hander Paul Skenes (No. 1, 2023), outfielder Dylan Crews (No. 2, 2023) and infielder Jacob Berry (No. 5, 2022).

Anderson, a First-Team All-American and First-Team All-SEC performer, was named the Most Outstanding Player of the 2025 College World Series after leading LSU to its eighth national championship. He was also named last month the Baseball America College Pitcher of the Year.

He was 2-0 in the CWS with victories over Arkansas and Coastal Carolina, posting a 0.56 ERA while allowing just one run on six hits in 16.0 innings with 17 strikeouts.

Anderson fired only the second complete-game shutout in LSU’s College World Series history when he defeated Coastal Carolina on June 21 with a brilliant three-hitter in Game 1 of the CWS Finals.

He finished 12-1 on the season with a 3.18 ERA and 180 strikeouts in 119.0 innings. He completed the year No. 1 in the nation in total strikeouts and No. 7 in strikeouts per nine innings (13.61).

His total of 180 Ks this season is No. 3 on the LSU single-season strikeouts list, trailing only Paul Skenes (209 Ks, 2023) and Ben McDonald (202 Ks, 1989).

Anderson was No. 1 in the SEC in strikeouts (180), No. 1 in the league in innings pitched (119.0), No. 1 in wins (12), No. 6 in ERA (3.18) and No. 7 in opponent batting average (.211).

Anderson, who has a 3.57 GPA as a sport administration major/business administration minor, was voted a 2025 Academic All-American by College Sports Communicators, and he received the 2025 Corbett Award, presented by the Allstate Sugar Bowl to the top male athlete in the state of Louisiana.