HATTIESBURG, Miss. — Southern Miss outfielder Joey Urban was the only Golden Eagle drafted on the second day of the 2026 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. The Toronto Blue Jays selected him in the ninth round with the 282nd overall pick, according to team sources.
Urban, a Jupiter, Florida, native, played and started all 61 games during his senior season. He primarily played center field and designated hitter, batting .320 with 11 doubles, three triples, 15 home runs and 55 RBIs. He scored 70 runs, tying for ninth on Southern Miss’s single-season list, and ranked 21st nationally in runs scored, sources said.
Over his two-year collegiate career, Urban hit .326 with 106 runs, 20 doubles, four triples, 24 home runs and 82 RBIs. He closed his senior year batting .397 over his final 14 games, with 21 runs, five doubles, a triple, four home runs and 19 RBIs. He also maintained a six-game hitting streak to end the season, sources added.
Urban earned the Sun Belt Conference Tournament Most Outstanding Player award after hitting .333 in the event, with seven runs, a triple, a home run and a team-high 8 RBIs. He was named Sun Belt Player of the Week twice during the season, making him the only Golden Eagle position player to win back-to-back weekly awards. Additionally, Urban was named to the Round Rock Classic All-Tournament team after collecting a triple, a home run and four RBIs against Oregon State, sources said.
This marks the second consecutive year the Blue Jays have drafted a Southern Miss player, following Jake Cook, who was selected in the third round last year. Urban is the fifth Golden Eagle drafted by Toronto, joining pitchers John Gilligan, John Bale, Conor Fisk, and Cook. Two other former Golden Eagles, who transferred after the 2026 season, were also drafted Sunday: McCarty English by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 17th round and Drake Meeks by the Detroit Tigers in the 18th round, sources said.
