Shortstop Maximus Martin heads to Rutgers with lessons learned from MLB draft

Shortstop Maximus Martin had a conversation with his friend on the second day of the Major League Baseball draft. He said, “I’m going to do this — I’m pulling my name out,” as rounds six, seven, and eight went by and he was not selected.

“I went into the draft knowing what type of player I am,” said Martin, who had 27 runs from 55 at-bats this past season, “and knowing how much I’m worth. I’m not going to sell myself short, so I made a personal decision that if it was getting a little late and some things weren’t lining up that I was going to take the chance and I was going to go to college ... then hopefully get another shot at the 2025 draft class.”

On social media, Martin withdrew his name from the remainder of the draft. The Moorestown star felt it was the right decision to play for Rutgers, where he originally committed during his sophomore year.

However, Martin had felt confident leading up to the draft. He was ranked 122nd among prospects by MLB.com, showcased his abilities in front of scouts, and was named an Under Armour All-American.

“You hear certain things from certain people,” Martin said. “In mock drafts, where they have you doesn’t mean that necessarily you’ll get picked in that place. Or if you’re talking to a team and they say they want you, there’s no 100% guarantee. I was just happy to be considered, even to have my name on a board, just given an opportunity to get picked by a major league team.”

Rutgers coach Steve Owens was heavily involved in Martin’s recruiting process, as well as assistant coach Mike Garza, who works with the infielders. Rutgers had three players selected in the draft this year for the first time since 2010.

Martin said he hopes to be a potential first-rounder three years from now.

“It’s just a different journey going through college, but I’m happy to be playing for my state and representing people from New Jersey,” Martin said. “Because of my position I was in this year, it shows that you can be a really high recruit and prospect from South Jersey, from a small public school, and, no, you don’t have to be in Florida.”

» READ MORE: Maximus Martin made some believers at Moorestown

(The pride of Millville, Mike Trout, probably can understand that sentiment.)

After his announcement, Martin called Owens and said he wasn’t ready to be a professional athlete, acknowledging his commitment and willingness to develop as a Scarlet Knight.

“I think that I’ll be able to answer some questions that maybe organizations had about me,” Martin said. “After these three years of college, I won’t have them wondering what I can’t do. I’m going to show everybody what I can do on a daily basis because college is a little different than high school. People can look at me under a microscope, you know, more continuously. I can kind of dot the I’s and cross the T’s.”