Joel Sarver (above center) against ECU in an April 2025 matchup.
Emmanuel Perkins/Niner Times
After pitcher Blake Gillespie was drafted in the ninth round of the 2025 MLB Draft, the 49ers added two more to the pros, with Logan Poteet and Joel Sarver drafted No. 511 and 513.
Both 17th-round selectees, Poteet, will join the Chicago Cubs, while Sarver will join the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Charlotte has now had multiple players selected in each of the last five MLB Drafts and at least one draftee in eight of the last nine, with the only exception being the shortened five-round draft in 2020. This year’s trio brings UNC Charlotte baseball Head Coach Robert Woodard’s total to 15 players drafted over the past five years and 68 overall selections during his coaching career.
At catcher for the 49ers, Poteet started all 51 games for Charlotte, totaling 473 putouts and earning a 0.393 on-base percentage.
Now, with the Cubs, Poteet will likely suit up for the Knoxville Smokies, the Cubs’ Double-A affiliate.
Any time spent with the Smokies would mark a hometown reunion for Poteet, as the catcher has played baseball in the East Tennessee area before at Powell High School. At Powell, Poteet was recruited as the No. 2 catcher in the state and earned a scholarship to Vanderbilt University before transferring to Charlotte after two seasons with the Commodores.
The Chicago Cubs’ Triple-A affiliate is the Iowa Cubs, who play in Des Moines and could see Poteet suit up for them as he works his way into the show.
Behind the mound and relieving his now professional peer, Gillespie, Sarver earned a record of 2-1 and 32 strikeouts, playing in 19 games.
Just three years ago, the Diamondbacks picked another former Charlotte pitcher, Spencer Giesting, in 2022.
Giesting has since played with the Reno Aces, where Sarver may join him as he works his way into the Diamondbacks’ rotation. The Aces are the Diamondbacks’ Triple-A affiliate.
While the Charlotte Knights are also Triple-A, the two teams play in different leagues, meaning Sarver will not return to the Queen City if he sees time with the Aces.
Gillespie was drafted eight rounds ahead of Sarver and Poteet, going No. 284 overall to the New York Yankees.
A unanimous First Team All-Conference selection, Gillespie was a star for the 49ers in 2025 and pitched the second no-hitter in program history on March 7 against James Madison University.
Gillespie will likely go on to play for a Yankees minor-league affiliate, such as the Hudson Valley Renegades (High-A) or the Tampa Tarpons (Single-A).
Still, with an injury-riddled Yankees pitching staff, Gillespie could see the mound sooner than expected.