Chilliwack鈥檚 Connor Dykstra has signed his first professional contract with the Seattle Mariners following the conclusion of this year鈥檚 MLB Draft. 

鈥淭he phone call from the Mariners organization is something I鈥檒l never forget, it turned everything into a reality,鈥� said Dykstra. 鈥淐alling my parents (Tina and Gord) and giving them the news was special, hearing their pure joy and excitement pour out was a great moment we had together.鈥�

Dykstra, who graduated from Sardis Secondary School, spent his collegiate career in Fairfax, Virginia playing for the George Mason Patriots Division-1 baseball team. 

With the Patriots, Dykstra quickly came into his own behind the plate appearing in 161 games 鈥� 159 of which he started 鈥� garnering a .992 fielding percentage. On the offensive side of things he finished with a .291 batting average and .908 OPS. 

2023 was a standout year for the backstop who collected career highs in hits (57), doubles (18), home runs (9), RBI (48) and runs scored (45). His efforts helped the Patriots to just their second-ever Atlantic-10 Conference Championship which ended in him being named to the All-Conference First Team.

Dykstra also spent three seasons playing premier collegiate summer ball, with his most recent season spent with the Victoria HarbourCats in the West Coast League. 

It was a successful draft for the HarbourCats who, including Dykstra, saw five players signed or selected in this year鈥檚 draft. 

鈥淲e are immensely proud of these players, their hard work and dedication to the game and to our program when they were wearing our uniform,鈥� said HarbourCats managing partner Jim Swanson. 鈥淭hese are tremendous young men, each has their own story and it鈥檚 one of excellence and high achievement. 

鈥淲e hope they all make the steps to reach the MLB level and join the six players we have already produced since the HarbourCats landed in 2013.鈥�

Despite the accomplishment, Dykstra knows he has his work cut out for him. 

鈥淥nce I finally put pen to paper, it was like 鈥榦h OK now this is real鈥�, everything leading up to that point still hadn鈥檛 set in, but after signing it became reality,鈥� said the 23-year-old. 鈥淚'm looking forward to developing into a better man and baseball player as this process continues, and not taking each day for granted.鈥�

Dykstra is expected to join the Mariners rookie-ball affiliate the Arizona Mariners in the Arizona Complex League.