Former Natchez High Bulldog shortstop, Exavier &uot;Nook&uot; Logan was taken in the third round of the Major League Baseball Draft on Monday by the Detroit Tigers.

Logan, who runs a 6.28, 60-yard dash, was drafted in 1998 by the New York Yankees straight out of high school, but ended up attending school at Copiah-Lincoln Community College, where he played baseball for the Wolfpack.

The two years of hard work and dedication to the sport of baseball have now just begun to pay off.

&uot;I’m extremely excited,&uot;&160;he said. &uot;It’s just a great feeling to get drafted, and to get drafted so high.

&uot;I&160;was expecting to go sometime between the first through seventh rounds, and honestly I&160;expected it would be in the fifth or sixth, so it’s just a big relief to go as early as the third,&uot;&160;he said.

Logan, who batted .333 with 47 stolen bases for Co-Lin and also set a Junior College World Series record with seven stolen bases, was the 78th pick overall, and the first player from Mississippi to be taken in the draft.

He was also the only Mississipian to be taken in the first five rounds of this year’s draft.

Logan said that he was very surprised when he received a call Monday afternoon from the Tigers.

&uot;The Tigers sort of came out of nowhere,&uot;&160;he said. &uot;I&160;hadn’t been talking to them much at all.&uot;

Logan said he had been contacted by 20-plus teams, with the Atlanta Braves, Cleveland Indians, Los Angeles Dodgers, the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Seattle Mariners showing the most interest.

&uot;I&160;was leaning towards the Dodgers, because they showed the most interest in me most recently,&uot; Logan said.

Logan said that when he was drafted to the Yankees out of high school, he thought that if he had a good year his first year at Co-Lin he might be drafted then.

&uot;I guess the surgery that I&160;had after the first year, and all the weight I lost kind of pushed the scouts and teams away for a little bit, but this year was really encouraging for me,&uot;&160;he said.

Logan said being selected by the Tigers, and being presented with the opportunity to play with major league baseball players would be a dream come true.

&uot;It would be a great thrill for me to be able to play with people like Juan Gonzalez and Brad Ausmus, and be coached by Alan Trammel and Phil Garmer,&uot; he said.

Logan said that contract negotiations with the Tigers will begin at the end of this week.

&uot;If everything goes alright then I’ll be reporting to Lakeland, Florida (Detroit’s short-season Rookie League) pretty soon,&uot; he said.

Logan said that if things do not work out with me and the Tigers, he will consider playing at either Mississippi State University or Alabama.

&uot;Whatever happens, it’s going to be an exciting next few days. I just hope that everything works out for me and the Tigers.&uot;