LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla.- Former Augustana pitcher Jordan Milbrath was selected at the eighth pick in the first round of the MLB Rule 5 Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday morning.

"When I started professional baseball in 2013, the only goal I had in mind was to make the big leagues," Milbrath said of his professional baseball journey. "I am forever grateful to the Cleveland Indians for taking a chance on me and placing pieces around me to help me perform to the best of my abilities. I am beyond excited for this opportunity with the Pittsburgh Pirates and, as always, I will work hard and do the best I can. God has a plan for my life and if he wants me to be a big leaguer, I will be a big leaguer."

Milbrath, a Springfield, Minn. native, had spent the last five seasons in the Cleveland Indians organization after being drafted by the Indians with the 1,041st pick of the 35th round of the 2013 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. Milbrath spent last season with the Lynchburg Hillcats (High-A) and Akron RubberDucks (Double-A). In 30 relief outings (56 innings) he went a combined 5-3 with a combined 3.02 ERA with 63 strikeouts.

Throughout his five year MiLB career, Milbrath has compiled a record of 20-33 with an ERA of 4.33 in 405 innings of work. Milbrath has pitched in 139 games (49 starts) with 352 strikeouts.

"Many people don't understand what the Rule 5 draft is. This is an outstanding opportunity for Jordan and a really big deal," Augustana head baseball coach Tim Huber said of Milbrath's selection. "The Pirates now have to put him on their 40-man roster and he needs to stay in the big leagues all year or be offered back to Cleveland for half of what they paid to select him. He was a bit roadblocked in a great Cleveland Indians farm system. I think he would have gotten a big league call up last year had he been in many other systems. He deserves this shot and time what tell what comes of it. A guy with an upper 90s fastball is trending in MLB now and Jordan has that power arm teams are looking. For that reason I'm not surprised that the Pirates are taking this chance to take Jordan. He throws from a side-arm arm slot making him a great relief option to get ground balls and has also proven he can throw multiple innings if needed. What many people won't know is that Jordan made the change to side-arm just this past spring so he could really figure this out and hopefully spend several years in the big leagues. I'm so proud of him for continuing to grind during his time in the minors. He has worked out with our team the past five years since he was drafted and is great to have around our guys."

The Indians will receive $100,000 from the Pirates for Milbrath. Milbrath must remain on the Pirates 25-man roster for a specific number of days during the season, but if they don't keep him they must offer him back to the Indians for $50,000.

Milbrath pitched one season for Augustana in 2013, after redshirting in 2012. Milbrath started 12 games for the Vikings with a record of 7-2, posting an ERA of 4.72 with 60 strikeouts in 67 innings of work.

Augustana University is located in Sioux Falls, S.D. and is a member of the NSIC.