ST. PETERSBURG ― When Emilien Pitre arrived in Lexington, Kentucky, for college, he had more of an adjustment period than a typical Wildcat freshman. The Canadian infielder not only was seeing a new level of baseball and meeting new teammates, but dealing with another language.

Pitre grew up speaking French in the hockey-loving suburb of Repentigny, Montreal.

“The Lexington community is far different from Quebec,” Pitre said with a laugh. “So that was definitely an adjustment, but the people there, they were so welcoming to me, they made the transition easier.”

Pitre did not have the traditional baseball path but Sunday night, the second baseman out of the University of Kentucky was the Rays’ surprise second-round draftee, No. 58 overall. Draft “experts” predicted he would go in the later rounds, but the Rays liked what Pitre showed just getting here.

“We’re thrilled to take Emilien Pitre,” Rays amateur scouting director Chuck Ricci said. “I think he’s another guy with really good contact skills and the power kind of emerged this year. (He’s) a very, very self-made player. I think he showed up at Kentucky, probably wasn’t ready to play that level, and just worked really hard at his English, at his body and his game, and where he’s come in that amount of time is just, it’s so impressive.

“Our guys did a Zoom with him the other day, and they came away just really, really impressed by just, just how far he’s come on his own. He’s at a good program in Kentucky, and he really made the most of an opportunity.”

Pitre had to take advantage of any opportunity.

Growing up in a suburb of Montreal, Pitre calls himself a Canadian “outlier” in that he never played the national sport of hockey. Instead, he gravitated to soccer and baseball. No one in his family played the latter; his family just supported his love of the game.

Pitre grew up playing baseball maybe two to three months a year because “it’s so cold” up there.

“I played travel ball with this organization from Quebec when I was 15 or 16, and luckily, I got calls from a couple of different schools, and Kentucky was the first one to reach out to me,” Pitre said. “They mentioned how much they believed in me from the beginning so that really stuck with me.

“The past three years have been the best three years of my life.”

Pitre saw action in just 11 games as a freshman. He came in undersized and needed experience.

“I got into Kentucky and I was little,” Pitre said. “I was not big, not strong, and so my first year was all about getting bigger, stronger and faster. I made my goal to be at a certain weight and be certain strength. So my first year, I ate and lifted every single day. I focused on my body as much as I have ever done in my life.”

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Pitre had missed two seasons due to the COVID pandemic and then his 12th-grade year, which is a gap year in Quebec, he had spent living with a family in Ontario to learn English.

“But after that, I played summer baseball for the first time in, like, a couple years,” Pitre said of competing in the Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate Baseball League. “So I was just ready to, you know, obviously, get on the field and play. That summer, I went to Maryland and Bethesda and played summer ball, and absolutely had a blast there and played well. So it was nice to see all the work I put in and finally show up on the field and perform.”

In three years at Kentucky, Pitre was a .307 hitter with a .460 slugging percentage. He hit 11 home runs (10 in 2024) and stole 46 bases (26 this past season).

The Rays think that Pitre’s power will continue to come as he grows stronger — and not at the cost of his speed.

“We made a couple of adjustments to my swing. And I got stronger. That summer I gained about 10 pounds, while still keeping my ability to steal bases and stay fast,” Pitre said.

Pitre is excited to start the next leg of his unlikely journey to professional baseball with the Rays organization. He had several meetings with Tampa Bay and was not surprised — like some draft experts — that they picked him so early.

“It feels amazing,” Pitre said. “It’s been a dream since I started playing baseball. So being able to feel this moment with my family is awesome.”

Day 2 Rays picks

Round 3, 94th overall

Nathan Flewelling, Catcher, St. Joseph High School (Alberta, Canada)

Round 4, 124th

Nate Knowles, RHP, William & Mary

Round 5, 157th

Jacob Kmatz, RHP, Oregon State

Round 6, 186th

Janzen Keisel, RHP, Oklahoma State

Round 7, 216th

Ryan Andrade, RHP, Pittsburgh

Round 8, 246th

Jayden Voelker, RHP, Northern Essex CC (Massachusetts)

Round 9, 276th

Garrett Gainey, LHP, South Carolina

Round 10, 306th

Trey Pooser, RHP, Kentucky

• • •

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Could we actually see the Kentucky Wildcats miss out on Bluegrass products Jasper Johnson and Malachi Moreno? Based on the latest recruiting buzz, there’s a real chance it will happen.

With the AAU season effectively wrapping up soon with the Nike Peach Jam now underway, it looks like Johnson could announce a decision in the coming weeks, but it’s unlikely to be Kentucky.

Heading down the stretch, the North Carolina Tar Heels and Alabama Crimson Tide have drawn the most buzz for Johnson. That was reiterated by On3’s Joe Tipton, who believes the Tide and Heels are standing out for the Versailles (KY) native.

He recently took a visit to Alabama and the Crimson Tide should like where they’re at.

North Carolina is also making a really strong push and should not be underestimated. The hometown Kentucky Wildcats remain involved.

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One source said that this recruitment will likely come down to Alabama and North Carolina.

As for Moreno, the Cats appear to have a much better shot with him, though they may not be leading the race, at least based on what On’3s Jamie Shaw is hearing.

While Kentucky is thought to be near the top for Moreno, the Indiana Hoosiers may actually lead this race.

Heading into the visits, sources tell me to watch for Kentucky and Indiana in this one. One source close to the recruitment took it a step further and said they think Indiana leads heading into the visits.

If Moreno and Johnson end up elsewhere, it would be a painful blow for the start of the Mark Pope era. It’s rare that the state of Kentucky produces not one but two top-30 prospects, so to miss out on both would really sting, especially since they’d be going to play for rivals. Not to mention Jasper is the son of Kentucky football great Dennis Johnson.

Saying this, I’m not sure how much blame can be placed on Pope’s shoulders if it happens. Relationships matter, and Pope didn’t recruit these guys while at BYU. Sure, he’s recruited them since becoming Kentucky’s new head coach in April, but these other schools have been on Johnson and Moreno for much longer.

Here’s to hoping Pope can finish strong and land at least one of these guys. Moreno is currently set to visit Kentucky for Big Blue Madness.

The Tampa Bay Rays have drafted French-Canadian born SS Émilien Pitre out of the University of Kentucky with the No. 58 selection in the 2024 MLB Draft.

Ostensibly the first “reach” of the 2024 draft, Pitre was ranked 173rd overall on MLB Pipeline. He projects as a second baseman or utility player at the major league level.

MLB Pipeline – 173rd overall – 40 FV

Scouting grades: Hit: 50 | Power: 30 | Run: 55 | Arm: 50 | Field: 55 | Overall: 40

Pitre starred on Canadian provincial teams and played for the national junior team, ranking as Quebec’s best position player prospect in 2021 before heading to college at Kentucky. He played sparingly as a freshman before becoming a catalyst for the Wildcats the past two seasons. One of the better second-base prospects available, he could fit into the first five rounds.

Pitre has a mature approach, working deep counts and concentrating on making all-fields contact so he can get on base. He’s pulling more pitches and producing solid exit velocities in 2024, but he still has a flat left-handed swing that generates a lot of grounders and cuts into his power production. He struggled with wood bats in the Cape Cod League and may top out at 10 homers per season in pro ball.

A solid runner, Pitre is an aggressive basestealer. He has good infield actions and covers a lot of ground at second base, where he’s a quality defender. His fringy-to-average arm strength will limit his effectiveness at shortstop and third base if he winds up in a utility role.