Latest Holy Spirit grad drafted by a professional team
Every young baseball player dreams of making it to the major leagues.
Brigantine native Trevor Cohen is one step closer to achieving that goal.
The 2022 Holy Spirit High School graduate became the latest local player to be selected in the Major League Baseball draft when the San Francisco Giants chose him in the third round Sunday with the 85th overall pick.
“I am definitely excited,” Cohen told the Courier-Post. “All the work I put in, all the years of playing baseball, everything I experienced, I’m thankful for in my baseball career.”
Cohen enjoyed an outstanding career at Rutgers, where he was a three-year starter.
This season, he batted .387 with 91 hits, 24 doubles, two home runs, 36 RBI, 20 stolen bases and a .983 OPS. He broke the Big 10 single-season record for conference hits in a season with 36 and tied the Rutgers season record for doubles.
During his three seasons at Rutgers, the left-handed hitting outfielder batted .338 with four homers, 100 RBI, 39 doubles, five triples, 223 hits, and struck out just 62 times total in 660 at-bats in 163 games.
His bat control is what really impressed the Giants.
“Trevor is a guy with a career eight percent strikeout rate,” Giants senior director of amateur scout Michael Holmes told the media Sunday. “He’s another guy that touches the baseball, puts it in play, has elite contact skills.
“(Cohen played left field at Rutgers, but), we think he can play center field. We like living in the middle of the diamond and like guys that make elite contact.”
Cohen played for Rutgers after a high school career that saw him star in two sports for Holy Spirit.
He batted .505 with a school-record nine home runs, 12 doubles, four triples, 28 RBI, 34 runs scored and 25 stolen bases as a senior in 2022.
He was also an outstanding quarterback for Holy Spirit’s football team, leading the Spartans to the state Non-Public B championship as a sophomore in 2019 and an undefeated record as a junior in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.
“Just sheer pride on my end and from everyone at Holy Spirit,” Spartans athletic director and former baseball coach Steve Normane told The Press. “He’s an incredibly hard-working young man and he’s earned every bit of this.”
Cohen is believed to be the seventh Holy Spirit graduate to be drafted by a professional sports franchise.
Baseball player Will Beauchemin was the first one. The first baseman was taken in the 18th round by the Baltimore Orioles in MLB’s inaugural draft in 1965.
In 1972, the late Chris Ford was taken in the second round of the NBA draft out of Villanova University in the second round.
Former NFL running back William Green was drafted in the first round (16th overall) by the Cleveland Browns out of Boston College in 2002.
Three other former Holy Spirit baseball players – pitcher A.J. Holland (16th round by the Atlanta Braves in 2011, catcher/DH Robert Boselli (37th round by the Cincinnati Reds in 2018) and pitcher Dave Hagaman (fourth round by Texas Rangers last year) – were also drafted.
Along with Green and Ford, Cohen is also to believed to be among 10 local players from Atlantic, Cape May or Cumberland Counties to be drafted in the third round or higher of pro sports franchise over the last 50 years.
Chase Petty (Mainland Regional), Mike Trout (Millville) and Ted Ford (Vineland) were first-round picks in the MLB Draft.
Petty, 22, was taken 26th overall in 2021 by the Minnesota Twins, then was eventually traded to the Reds. The right-handed pitcher made his major-league debut earlier this summer for the Reds and appeared in three games and is currently pitching for Louisville in the Triple A.
Trout, who turns 34 next month, was the Los Angeles Angels’ first-round choice (25th overall) in 2009. The three-time American League Most Valuable Player entered the All-Star break with 395 career home runs and 1,994 RBI.
Ted Ford, grandfather of former Major-Leaguer Darren Ford, was actually the highest draft pick of any local athlete. He was taken 11th overall by the Cleveland Indians in the 1966 MLB draft.
Local NFL players Austin Johnson (St. Augustine Prep, Galloway Township) and Max Melton (Cedar Creek High School, Mays Landing) were both second-round choices, as was former NBA player Lou Roe (Atlantic City) and former baseball player Joe Braithwaite (Atlantic City).
Johnson was taken by the Tennessee Titans in 2016 while Melton went to the Arizona Cardinals last year. Roe was selected by the Detroit Pistons in 1995. Braithwaite was a second-round pick of the Reds in 1966.
Third-round picks include Indianapolis Colts safety Cory Bird (Oakcrest High School) in 2001, New York Jets linebacker Greg Buttle (Mainland) in 1976 and Los Angeles Lakers forward Willie Glass (Atlantic City) in 1987.
SJSS Baseball playoffs set
The 10-team South Jersey South Shore Baseball League is scheduled to begin its playoffs this week.
Margate and Buena earned the top two seeds and will face 10th-seeded Cape May and eighth seed Egg Harbor Township, respectively, in the best-of-three quarterfinals.
Other matchups include Northfield (3)/Ocean City (6) and Absecon (4)/Hammonton (5).
Lifeguard racing schedule
The 41st Cape May Buzz Mogck Memorial SuperAthalon was scheduled to be held Monday as part of a busy week for local lifeguard racing.
The Ocean City Women’s Champioship was slated for Tuesday, followed by the Atlantic City Lifeguard Classic and David J. Kerr Memorials in Avalon on Friday.
David is a nationally recognized sports columnist who has covered Philadelphia and local sports for over 40 years. After 35 years with The Press, he has served as a columnist for 973ESPN.com and created his own Facebook page, Dave Weinberg Extra Points.
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