Courtesy of Yale Athletics

When Colton Shaw ’25 first picked up a baseball glove at age six in his hometown of Richardson, Texas, little did he know that he would become a high school and collegiate star, with a senior season that will go down in Yale record books.

The Seattle Mariners selected Shaw in the seventh round of the 2025 MLB Draft on Monday, fulfilling his childhood dream of becoming a professional ballplayer.

“It was just such a surreal moment,” Shaw said. “I honestly didn’t really have a reaction, since all of the moments leading up to this just flooded my mind at once. Having my family there next to me and seeing their reaction was really special, and it got me a little emotional.

“I just feel so grateful to be in the position I’m in now, and there are so many people to thank for it,” he added.

Sixteen years ago, it would have been hard to predict how a Texas kid’s life and a newfound sport would become so intertwined. Yet baseball soon took over life for the Shaw family, Colton Shaw’s mother, Tracy, said.

“Our family has traveled to many games over the years, hot weekends in Texas, travel ball in the summer and many tournaments that turned into our vacations,” Tracy Shaw wrote in a statement to the News. “We loved watching him grow up playing the sport he loves.”

After an illustrious high school career at Plano East High School, Colton Shaw’s talents brought him to New Haven. Ivy League opponents soon realized that the Bulldogs had a new force to be reckoned with, both in the batter’s box and on the mound. As a first-year, Shaw had the longest hitting streak on the Yale team during the season, 13, and he pitched 53.2 innings, the third most on the team.

While Shaw excelled as a two-way player, what most set him apart from other Ivy League players was his resilience. 

Max Imhoff ’25, a teammate, recalled a moment when a line drive hit Shaw’s right forearm in the second inning against Dartmouth.

“The game had to stop for a bit to let Colton recover of course, but then he proceeded to throw another five innings,” Imhoff told the News. “We won that game, and the head coach of Dartmouth was angry at his players because they weren’t tough enough. He said they needed to be more like the Yale pitcher who took a line drive off the arm and still pitched, for God’s sake!”

In his sophomore season, Shaw was named All-Ivy Second Team after finishing top ten in the conference in wins, strikeouts, earned run average and innings pitched. Shaw put down the bat in his junior year, moving into a pitching-only role. That season saw him lead Yale in strikeouts, while twice earning the Ivy League Pitcher of the Week honor.

Going into his senior season, Shaw was named captain of the team by Head Coach Brian Hamm. In the clubhouse, Shaw took pride in leading his teammates. On the mound, he tinkered with his mechanics under the guidance of Yale’s pitching coach, Chris Wojick.

“This spring, Colton made key adjustments to his arm slot to add more depth and movement to his pitches,” Hamm wrote to the News. “Those changes have created greater deception, helping him keep hitters off balance. It’s that kind of attention to detail and willingness to adapt that will serve him well at the next level.”

In his senior campaign, Shaw helped power Yale to its first Ivy League regular season title since 2018. Shaw was dominant in his 77 innings, and he allowed only four runs over the course of his last five starts. In May, he was recognized with a First Team All-Ivy selection. 

Shaw’s relentlessness and fierce competitive nature stood out to first-year pitcher Jack Ohman ’28.

“Coming in, I knew Colton was a workhorse,” Ohman said. “He’s always chasing improvement each day. He’s also a very caring person. His pro teammates will be lucky to have him around.”

For now, Ivy foes can rest a little easier knowing that Shaw will no longer be eyeing them down with his fearsome fastball and slider. Fans of the Mariners can celebrate landing a player who has shown an insatiable drive to improve. And back in Richardson, the Shaw family can watch as their work comes to fruition at a new level.

“It brings me joy to see Colton live out his life-long dream. He has put in a lot of time into the sport he loves,” Tracy Shaw wrote to the News. “The hard work on the field, in the gym, the workouts, the dedication to continue after all these years. We are so proud of how far he has come, the determination to reach this level he set for himself since he was young.”

When he was taken by Seattle with the 212th pick, Shaw became the 44th Yale player selected in MLB Draft history and just the 11th player in school history to be selected in the first ten rounds of the draft, according to Yale Athletics.