June 8, 2011

WACO, Texas - Baylor senior infielder Landis Ware was selected by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in the 44th round (No. 1,335) of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft on Wednesday.

Ware joins teammates Logan Verrett and Brooks Pinckard to give Baylor three 2011 MLB Draft picks. Verrett was picked in the third round by the New York Mets and the Cincinnati Reds chose Pinckard in the 10th round. Baylor has had at least three draft picks in 13 of the last 14 seasons.

Ware was the Bears most experienced player on the Bears' 2011 roster with 188 games played and 169 career starts. He finished his career with a .266 batting average, 30 doubles, five triples, nine home runs, 97 RBI and 81 runs scored. He also went 19-for-22 stealing bases, had 23 sacrifice bunts and 10 sacrifice flies. Ware's 18 career total sacrifices in Big 12 play are six more than any player in program history.

In 2011, Ware's 55 games started ranked second on the team. He led the Bears with 14 doubles and six sacrifice flies, finished third with 32 RBI and ranked second with 10 stolen bases in 11 attempts. He also made just nine errors in 253 chances at shortstop for a .964 fielding percentage.

A 2011 team captain, Ware was a three-time Academic All-Big 12 Conference selection. He earned Big 12 Player of the Week on March 7 and was named to the Houston College Classic all-tournament team after going 7-for-10 in the tournament.

Teams have until August 15 to sign players who have remaining college eligibility like Verrett and Pinckard, but Ware does not face a signing deadline.

2011 BAYLOR MLB DRAFT PICKS (* - 2012 signee)
Logan Verrett - 3rd round (New York Mets)
Brooks Pinckard - 10th round (Cincinnati Reds)
*Michael Howard - 21st round (Minnesota Twins)
Landis Ware - 44th round (Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim)