Upon seeing his name on the draft board last Tuesday afternoon, recent Columbia High School graduate Dominic Voegele experienced a range of emotions. 

“Half of it was disbelief, shock,” he said. “The other part was that I was pretty pumped about it.”

Voegele, a 6-foot-2 right-handed thrower and hitter, was selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 20th round of the Major League Baseball Draft. He was the 595th overall pick and the final selection in 2023 for the Diamondbacks.

Voegele was the only high school player selected among Arizona’s 21 total 2023 draft picks.

The excitement of being drafted made Voegele a popular young man last Tuesday. 

“My phone was blowing up for hours,” he said. “It was all pretty crazy.”

Voegele said he has a good relationship with Arizona’s Midwest area scout, and that this scout had been in touch with him many times and came out to see Voegele play over the years. 

Now, the decision is between reporting to the Diamondbacks and honoring a previous commitment to the University of Kansas. 

Voegele said the deadline to have details finalized is July 23.

Dom’s father Matt Voegele told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch he was “90 percent” certain his son would attend Kansas.  

This year’s St. Louis Post-Dispatch All-Metro Baseball Player of the Year, Voegele was selected to the Illinois High School Baseball Coaches Association Class 2A All-State Team. 

Voegele, with a fastball clocked in the mid-90s, went 10-0 on the mound with a 1.04 ERA and St. Louis-area leading 111 strikeouts in 67-plus innings pitched.

At the plate, he led the entire area with 12 home runs, 20 doubles, 51 RBIs and 57 runs in addition to hitting .488 with a .961 slugging percentage and 23 stolen bases. 

He was also an all-state baseball selection last year.

CHS head baseball coach Neal O’Donnell was proud of his former standout upon hearing the news of Voegele being drafted.

“It’s special to have a player drafted, and we’re all super proud of Dom,” O’Donnell said. “He’s such a great competitor, but he’s also a tremendous teammate and leader. Regardless if he goes to KU or signs with the D-backs, someone is getting a great one.”