Flushing, N.Y. - Rising freshman Daniel Alfonzo of the Adelphi University baseball team was selected in the 38th round of the MLB Draft by the New York Mets on Wednesday, bringing his baseball career full circle before it begins in earnest. 

The Bayside High School product, the son of former MLB All-Star and beloved Met Edgardo Alfonzo, had a decorated high school career, and will forgo his selection to play for the Panthers beginning in the 2017-18 academic year.

"Seeing my name in the draft, I take it as a motivation," said Alfonzo. "I see it as a motivation to play at Adelphi and improve on the field." 

Alfonzo helped his team capture its first Public Schools Athletic League (PSAL) Championship in the 2016 season while playing third base and shortstop. Named Bayside's MVP each of the last three seasons, he led the PSAL in home runs in his sophomore year and had 24 hits in 51 at bats as a senior. 

"We've seen him quite a bit," Mets vice president of amateur scouting Tommy Tanous told MLB.com's Anthony DiComo in a report. "He's a really, really talented kid. He plays third base, can hit, can do a little bit of everything. "He's a great kid. Obviously, the bloodlines are there. And he's a heck of a baseball player."

Added Head Coach Dom Scala: "After speaking with Daniel, he is looking forward to joining the program so he can polish his skills and get a great education."

Edgardo Alfonzo played eight seasons in Flushing for the Mets from 1995-2002, hitting .292 and 120 home runs over the course of his career in the Blue and Orange. He helped the Mets win a National League pennant in 2000, was an All-Star in 2000 and a Silver Slugger Award winner in 1999, and now manages the Brooklyn Cyclones in the Mets' minor league system. He also played for the San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim and the Toronto Blue Jays.

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About Adelphi Athletics:
Adelphi University joined the Northeast-10 Conference in the fall of 2009 and in the past eight seasons, has collected 23 regular season conference titles, 25 tournament championships, 33 individual crowns and captured the Northeast-10 Presidents' Cup four times (2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017), while winning six NCAA Division II National Championships.

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