Western Kentucky outfielder Ryan Wideman (33) bats during Western Kentucky’s 11-1 win over Sam Houston on Sunday, March 30, 2025 at Nick Denes Field in Bowling Green, Ky. (Caleb Lowndes/Daily News)

The San Diego Padres selected Western Kentucky outfielder Ryan Wideman in the third round of the 2025 MLB Draft on Sunday night.

Wideman’s selection marks the fifth Hilltopper to be drafted to the MLB in the last three seasons – the most in a three-year span since 2013-15.

By being picked 99th overall, Wideman became the 63rd Hilltopper to be selected into the MLB. He is the first Hilltopper to be selected by the Padres since Greg Raymer in 1982.

Wideman delivered one of the most decorated single seasons in Hilltopper baseball history during the 2025 campaign. A transfer from Georgia Highlands College, Wideman arrived at WKU after a stellar junior college career where he hit .423 with 22 home runs, 39 doubles and 117 RBIs over 115 appearances. He earned Third Team All-American honors in 2023 and First Team All-American honors in 2024 while ranking sixth nationally with 48 stolen bases in his final JUCO season. He was recognized on D1Baseball’s Top 50 Impact JUCO Transfers list (No. 4) while being ranked No. 74 in D1Baseball’s MLB Draft Top 150 College Prospects list.

In his lone season at WKU, Wideman was named both the Conference USA Player and Newcomer of the Year, becoming just the ninth Hilltopper ever to claim a conference player of the year honor and only the third to be named league newcomer of the year. He earned a spot on the All-CUSA First Team and was one of four Hilltoppers selected to the CUSA All-Tournament Team after WKU’s first Conference USA title run. Statistically, Wideman led CUSA in batting average (.398), hits (97), triples (6), total bases (159) and stolen bases (45) while finishing top five in the league in 12 offensive categories. He set a new program single-season record with 45 stolen bases and his 97 hits rank third all-time for a single season at WKU. His final slash line included a .398 batting average, .466 on-base percentage and .652 slugging percentage to go along with 10 home runs, 20 doubles, 68 RBIs, 71 runs scored and six triples over 60 games.

Wideman’s season featured several historic moments, including hitting for the first recorded cycle in program history on March 11 against Southern Illinois. In that game, he went 4-for-6 with a grand slam, double, triple, stolen base and a single-game program record nine RBIs. His outstanding performance earned him CUSA Hitter of the Week honors on March 17 following an 11-for-21 (.524) stretch that included a grand slam, five doubles, two triples, 11 RBIs, six runs and two stolen bases.

Wideman earned national recognition following the conclusion of the regular season as he was named an NCBWA First Team All-American, an ABCA/Rawlings First Team All-American, a Baseball America Second Team All-American and a Perfect Game USA Third Team All-American.

The MLB Draft will continue on Monday with rounds 4-20 starting at 10:30 a.m.