Complex sentence: After being drafted by the New York Mets in out of high school, Atkins elected to attend college instead--he was recruited by Pepperdine, USC, Oklahoma State, Cal State Fullerton and UCLA, choosing the latter.
Split into simpler sentences: After being drafted by the New York Mets in out of high school, Atkins elected to attend college instead. He was recruited by Pepperdine, USC, Oklahoma State, Cal State Fullerton and UCLA, choosing the latter.