Three players from the Tampa/Orlando area were chosen in the first eight overall picks of the 2015 Major League Baseball draft.

Brendan Rodgers, Kyle Tucker, and Carson Fulmer all heard their names called by MLB commissioner Rob Manfred less than an hour into the first round of the draft Monday night.

Rodgers, who just completed his senior year as at Lake Mary High School, was chosen third overall by the Colorado Rockies.

Two picks later, the Houston Astros selected the recent Plant High School graduate Tucker at fifth overall.

The Lakeland native Fulmer, who starred at Winter Haven’s All Saints Academy in Winter Haven before playing in college at Vanderbilt, was taken eighth overall by the Chicago White Sox.

Rodgers, a shortstop, was Baseball America’s top prospect and had hopes of being the first overall pick in the draft.

He’d end up hearing two other shortstops’ names called ahead of him (Dansby Swanson to Arizona and Alex Bregman to Houston), but Rodgers was still the first high school player selected.

Rodgers hit .368 with eight home runs and 23 RBI in his fourth varsity season at Lake Mary this spring.

He’s projected as a powerful right-handed hitter with all the tools to be a successful shortstop in the big leagues.

Rodgers is the highest drafted player from the Orlando area since the Brewers took Lake Brantley’s Rickie Weeks second overall in 2003.

Tucker, a talented outfielder, was the second high school player chosen after Rodgers

If he signs he’ll join his brother, Preston, in the Astros organization.

Kyle Tucker is the second player from the Tampa Bay area to ever be chosen in the top 5, joining former Cy Young Award winner Dwight Gooden (Hillsborough High School), who was also taken 5th overall in 1982.

Minutes after Tucker was chosen, MLB Network’s Peter Gammons compared his swing to that of Red Sox legend Ted Williams.

Tucker, who has been compared to former Rays outfielder Wil Myers, is seen as a five-tool player with limitless potential.

Kyle Tucker has more speed and a better arm than his brother, Preston, who’s off to a great start in his rookie season in Houston.

Fulmer, who was originally drafted in the 15th round by the Red Sox in 2012 before going to Vanderbilt, is an overpowering right-handed pitcher.

This season, Fulmer was a finalist for the Golden Spikes Award, which is given to college baseball’s best player.

He’s helped lead Vanderbilt back to the College World Series with a fastball that tops out around 97 miles per hour.

Fulmer was 9-0 with a 0.27 ERA and 161 strikeouts his senior year at All Saints Academy.

Fulmer has excelled both as a starter and closer during his time at Vanderbilt, and he could be successful in either role as a professional.

Later in the first round, two more players with local ties were selected. The Oakland A's took SS Richie Martin (Bloomingdale/Florida) with the 19th overall pick and the Baltimore Orioles picked SS Ryan Mountcastle of Hagerty with the 36th overall pick, in the compensatory portion of the first round.