Mitchell Northam

tnortham@dmg.gannett.com

Tyler Webb was a bit distracted from his Thursday morning workout in Columbia, South Carolina.

The 6-foot-6 pitcher was training at his alma mater, the University of South Carolina, but had the TV on and his phone in his hand, anxiously waiting to see the results of Major League Baseball's Rule 5 Draft. Webb scrolled through Twitter, hoping to see his name associated with a pick.

Around 9:06 a.m., he did.

The folks down in Nassawadox can raise the Jolly Roger. One of their own is now a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Webb, a 2009 graduate of Northampton High School, was selected by the Pirates with the 10th pick in the first round of MLB's Rule 5 Draft on Thursday, Dec. 8.

“My agent said that a few teams had expressed some interest in taking me,” Webb said by phone on Thursday. “He didn’t know what team was going to take me, but we had a pretty good idea and hoped that it would happen and it did, so it all worked out.”

Players selected in the major league phase of the draft must be added to the drafting team's 25-man roster for the entire season. This means that Webb, a tall lefty reliever, will make his major league debut in the 2017 season with the Pirates, unless they chose to waive him or offer him back to the Yankees.

“I was extremely excited,” Webb said. “It’s a new opportunity, and a really good one at that, to continue my career and hopefully take it to the next step. It gives you that little extra motivation to keep working hard through the winter to be ready for the spring.”

As of Thursday afternoon, Webb said he hadn't yet spoken to anyone from Pittsburgh's management, but added that it is winter meetings and he understands it is a hectic and busy time for big league teams.

Pirates' general manager Neal Huntington spoke highly of Webb to reporters Thursday, citing his versatility and pitching arsenal as things the Pirates liked about him.

"(Webb is a) multi-inning left-handed pitcher with some deception. We like the fastball-changeup combination. He's shown a solid slider-cutter at times," Huntington told MLB.com. "(We) felt like, of the guys that were available in the draft, (he's) probably the one most equipped to come in and help the club win. He fits in our mix well."

Webb, 26, has been floating around the minor leagues since 2013. That season he was picked by the New York Yankees in the 10th round of MLB's Amateur Draft for college and high school players.

After his high school days at Northampton, the oldest son of Kirk and Kristen Webb went on to play for the University of South Carolina. Through his four seasons in Columbia, the Gamecocks won 201 games and took three trips to the College World Series, winning back-to-back titles in 2010 and 2011.

MORE ON WEBB:DelmarvaNow caught up with the Eastern Shore native in Norfolk this summer

It was assumed that Webb might have made his major league debut this past season. The Yankees' bullpen wasn't great to start the 2016 season — they finished in the middle of the pack at 16th for bullpen ERA — and Webb was beginning his third year of Triple-A ball.

But his call-up never came.

“I was obviously hoping that (the call-up) would come, but there’s so many moving parts to make that happen, so It’s kind of hard to beat yourself up about it,” Webb said. “You can only control what you can control, and I feel like I did that for the most part. I had a couple of rough outings as a starter, but other than that I feel like I threw very well.

“It’s just kind of the luck of the draw and the stars have to align for someone to get called up and it just didn’t happen.”

Webb spent all of 2016 with the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Railriders. In 36 appearances, he went 4-3 with a 3.59 ERA, 82 strikeouts and a WHIP of 1.24.

It should be noted that his ERA is a bit inflated though. The Yankees asked Webb to start five games — the first time he had done so since his sophomore year at South Carolina — and his ERA was 6.38 in those outings. In 31 appearances as a reliever, Webb had a much better ERA mark of 2.65.

“I have most of my innings out of the pen and I’m a lot more comfortable as a reliever,” Webb said. “But if (starting) was a thing (the Pirates) need from me, then I would try my best to learn that. Pitching is pitching. It’s just a little different. Relieving is hopefully my niche.”

Webb was a key player for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre last season. The club went on to win the Triple-A National Championship, beating the El Paso Chihuahuas 3-1 in a seven-game series. He ended the season on a 15-outing streak of recording at least one strikeout.

For the Pirates, who finished in third place in the NL Central with a 78-83 record, Webb will be the sixth left-handed pitcher on their 25-man roster. Webb joins former Delmarva Shorebird Steven Brault and Bear, Delaware native Chad Kuhl as arms in the Pirates' pen.

“I’m not sure what my role will be yet,” Webb said. “I haven’t really followed them much, because I was with the Yankees. I’ll do whatever I need to help the team and hopefully pitch in the big leagues.”

PHOTOS:Tyler Webb through his years of baseball

WATCH:Orioles' Christian Walker talks about his former teammate, Tyler Webb

Webb is the Pirates' first Rule 5 selection since 2011. Jose Bautista, Johan Santana, Josh Hamilton, Dan Uggla, Shane Victorino and R.A. Dickey are a few players who were picked in other Rule 5 Drafts and went on to have successful careers. Last year, the Baltimore Orioles selected Joey Rickard with their Rule 5 pick.

When he makes his debut, Webb will be at least the fourth person from Accomack or Northampton counties to play in Major League Baseball.

Tom Clyde, a pitcher who was born in Wachapreague, played in four games with the Philadelphia Athletics in 1943. Northampton High's Bobby Brown played seven seasons as an outfielder with the Yankees, Mariners and Padres, and played in two World Series. Chuck Churn, another Northampton High alumnus, pitched for the Pirates, Indians and Dodgers from 1957 to 1959.

For Eastern Shore baseball fans hoping to see Webb play in-person, the Pirates will play in Baltimore against the Orioles on June 6 and 7 in 2017. The Washington Nationals will host the Pirates for a four-game series beginning on Sept. 28.

When Webb finally makes his major league debut, it will the first time he has ever seen a pro-level game in-person. That time might come with the Green Monster behind him, as the Pirates begin their season with a series in Boston.

"It just never happened. I didn’t go to any Redskins games either, so I’ve never been to any professional sporting event as a fan," Webb told DelmarvaNow.com in June. “I figure, I’ve gone this long. Why go now, as a fan?”

Growing up on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, Webb says that he didn't have a favorite team growing up, but he loved watching Roger Clemens and the Big Three of the Atlanta Braves: Greg Maddux, John Smoltz and Tom Glavine.

If there are still folks down on the Eastern Shore of Virginia without a favorite team, Webb gives them a reason to root for the Pirates.

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