Darren Dreifort

One of college baseball’s all-time greats, Darren Dreifort was born in Wichita and drafted out of Wichita Heights High School in 1990 (11th round) by the New York Mets. 

Instead of signing with the Mets, Dreifort went to Wichita State University. Over the next three years as a Shocker, he was 26-5 with a 2.24 earned run average on the mound and hit .318 with 25 home runs as a part-time designated hitter. 

As a sophomore at Wichita State, Dreifort was a first-team All­American and played on the 1992 U.S. Olympic squad at the Barcelona games. As a junior, he was college baseball’s player of the year, earning the Golden Spikes and Rotary Smith awards. 

Following his junior year, Dreifort was drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers with the second overall pick behind Alex Rodriguez. Dreifort made his major league debut the following spring, becoming one of the few players to bypass the minor leagues. 

After missing the 1995 season with injuries, Dreifort pitched two seasons out of the bullpen and was moved to the starting rotation in 1998. In 1999, he won 13 games and in 2000, he won 12 and seemed to have a bright future. 

In 2001, injuries again surfaced. He missed the entire 2002 season and retired following the 2004 season. For his major league career, Dreifort won 48 games with a 4.36 earned run average.

In 2009, Dreifort was elected to the National College Baseball Hall of Fame.