Former Plant standout and former Gator outfielder Preston Tucker has signed a contract with the Houston Astros after being selected in the seventh round of the baseball draft last month.
With his signing, all nine Gators selected in the draft have signed professional contracts. Tucker has been assigned to the Class A Tri-City Valleycats in Troy, N.Y., in the New York-Penn League.
Tucker was a first-team All-SEC selection in 2012 after being a first-team selection during his junior season and a second-team pick in 2010. He led UF's offense with a .393 (11-for-28) performance in NCAA play and became the first Gator to achieve All-Region Tournament status all four years of his career. He is the only UF player to earn Most Outstanding Player recognition twice (2009 and 2011). In 30 career NCAA tourney games, Tucker batted .368 (46-for-125) and holds school records in career at-bats (125), hits (46), RBI (31), runs (29), homers (11) and doubles (10).
"I'm definitely excited," Tucker said. "All my friends are already out playing so I know they are loving it right now. I'm definitely going to miss playing with the Gators, but this is a new chapter in my life and I'm ready to get it started."
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