Florida Gators shortstop Colby Shelton has been selected by the Chicago White Sox with the 166th overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft. The selection marks Florida’s 226th unique draftee since the MLB Draft began in 1965. Shelton is Florida’s 8th highest drafted shortstop and is slotted for a $403,900 signing bonus.
Shelton spent two years at UF after transferring from Alabama in 2024, hitting .304 with 27 home runs and 33 doubles in his Gators’ career. As a sophomore, Shelton played a critical role in Florida’s run to the final four of the College World Series, hitting .257 with 20 home runs and a .925 OPS while starting all 66 games at shortstop.
After being selected in the 20th round of the 2024 MLB Draft, Shelton returned for his junior season where he aimed to improve his batting average, contact rate, and opposite field hitting. In 2025, Shelton led the Gators with a .377 batting average while dropping his strikeout percentage by 18.7%. While Shelton’s home runs numbers were down, he logged a team high 19 doubles which helped increase his slugging percentage to .606. The 6’0, 205-pound infielder missed the final five weeks of the season due to a hamate injury suffered vs Arkansas.
With concerns over his range and overall athleticism at shortstop, Shelton likely projects as an offensive minded second baseman at the next level. The Lexington, South Carolina native will hit to all parts of the field and can handle left-handed pitching. Although his change in approach hurt his power numbers, Shelton has proven he can hit the long ball and find gaps with consistency.
CAREER ACCOLADES
2025 Brooks Wallace Award Semifinalist
2024 Stillwater Regional All-Tournament Team
2024 USA Baseball Golden Spikes Watch List
2023 Freshman All-SEC Team
2023 First Team Freshman All-American – D1Baseball.com