BOZEMAN — Bozeman native Bennett Hostetler was drafted by the Miami Marlins on Tuesday in the 18th round (539th pick) of the MLB Draft.
"So many kids when they’re younger say they want to play professional baseball," Hostetler said. "Now I’m one of the actual few that is going to.”
The former Bozeman Bucks standout and 2021 Summit League player of the year worked out for the Marlins earlier this summer in Missoula after finishing his fifth season with North Dakota State University.
“Right after the plane landed when we got back from Palo Alto [the Marlins] said we’ll be in contact," Hostetler said. "It kind of worked out that they have a cross checker that has a house out in Kalispell. It just kind of worked out that he and I met halfway in Missoula, and I just had a workout with him.”
Hostetler's .394 batting average in 213 at-bats this season was the highest performance in the Summit League, which ranked him No. 22 nationally.
Hostetler had the second-most hits (84), RBI (58), and total bases (129) in a single season with the Bison, and he also set new season records in both assists (176) and games played (61) this past year.
“NDSU is the only team that offered me a scholarship," Hostetler also said in an interview this past May. "Just being able to prove that I could play Division I baseball, prove to myself that I could and prove to everybody else that was like 'He’s from Montana, Montana baseball is not that great' -- just for me personally it’s really rewarding and hopefully there’s kids all around Montana that love baseball enough and want to work hard at it. Hopefully I can show them they can do whatever they want."
Hostetler was selected as the Summit League Player of the Week four times this season (May 10, March 22, March 15, Feb. 23), while also receiving back-to-back Summit League Athlete of the Month honors (May/June).
Through five seasons with NDSU, Hostetler finished first in program history in games played (225), games started (220), walks (108), hit by pitch (49), and sacrifice flies (15). His 157 career runs scored and 234 career hits both rank third in NDSU history.
