Tag: MLB Draft

New York Mets draft Longhorns RHP Tanner Witt in 14th round

In the 14th round, the New York Mets used the 413th overall pick on Longhorns pitcher Tanner Witt

On the third day of the MLB Draft, Texas baseball had a reason to celebrate. In the 14th round, the New York Mets used the 413th overall pick on Longhorns pitcher Tanner Witt. It is the second straight year that Witt has been drafted, but this time, he is expected to go pro.

In four years as a Longhorn, Witt appeared in 41 games, posting a 4.19 ERA while striking out 101 batters. Although his college career got off to a promising start, the Houston native has battled injuries over the last three years. In 2022, he had Tommy John Surgery and needed a follow-up procedure this year.

While Witt’s last few years have not gone as planned, he did show promise as a Longhorn. During the 2021 campaign, the 22-year-old recorded a 3.16 ERA in 28 games. Before injuries started to take their toll, he posted a 1.64 ERA in 11 innings in 2022.  He will now get to compete against his former teammates.

When Witt heard his name called, he became the third Longhorns player to be drafted this year. He joined outfielder Jared Thomas and pitcher Lebarron Johnson Jr., both selected by the Colorado Rockies. Texas signees Bryce Rainer (Tigers), Theo Gillen (Rays), Levi Sterling (Pirates), and Kyle DeGroat (Royals) were also selected.

Although Witt’s pro career is just beginning, the Mets hope they can help him recapture his 2021 form when he appeared destined for stardom. He could be a valuable arm in a major league bullpen, but he needs to stay healthy to maximize his talent.

Will Cannon selected by Reds in MLB Draft

Cannon was selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the 2024 MLB Draft after completing his second season on the Plains.

Former Auburn relief pitcher [autotag]Will Cannon[/autotag] was selected by the Cincinnati Reds with the No. 359 pick in the twelfth round of the 2024 MLB Draft on Tuesday afternoon.

The right-hander holds a career record of 3-3 with a 5.57 earned run average in just 40 outings with the Tigers, where 36 of those came out of the bullpen.

While he had a less than desirable campaign in 2024, the 6-1 product out of Phenix City, Alabama had flashes of being a powerful arm to go to in whatever situation he was thrown in. His velocity has given him the ability to put some spin on the ball at times, making him difficult to hit.

The Reds’ current roster is loaded in terms of the number of relievers in their bullpen, holding notable names like Nick Martinez, Lucas Sims and Sam Moll. The likelihood of Cannon being a consistent face in the MLB is low, but should his name be called on to make an appearance, will relish the opportunity. He will spend a large chunk of time developing in their farm system in the meantime.

Cannon is the third player from Auburn to be selected in the draft, with the other two being fellow pitchers Chase Allsup and Tanner Bauman, who were both taken on Monday afternoon.

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MLB Draft concludes with seven Kentucky players selected

Kentucky had seven total players from its 2024 team that were selected in the Major League Baseball Draft.

Three Kentucky players were selected on the final day of the annual Major League Baseball Draft on Tuesday, bringing the total number of players drafted from the Wildcats’ 2024 team to seven.

The three players drafted were all pitchers. Right-handers Mason Moore and Travis Smith were each selected in the 15th round. Moore went No. 439 overall to the Chicago White Sox while Smith was selected No. 455 overall by the Milwaukee Brewers.

Left-hander Dominic Niman was an 18th-round selection (No. 546 overall) by the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays ended up drafting three Wildcats players after taking second baseman Emilien Pitre (second-round, No. 58 overall) and right-hander Trey Pooser (fifth round, No. No. 306 overall) on Day 2 Monday.

Outfielder Ryan Waldschmidt was the first Kentucky player chosen at No. 31 overall by the Arizona Diamondbacks. In addition to Pitre and Pooser being taken on Day 2, the Los Angeles Angels selected first baseman Ryan Nicholson in the 10th round (No. 292 overall).

RELATED: Social media reacts to Ryan Waldschmidt being selected 31st overall in MLB Draft

Of Tuesday’s selections, Moore was 9-4 with a 5.05 ERA in 92 2/3 innings for the Wildcats in 2024. He made 18 starts and struck out 83 batters while walking 54. Smith made 13 appearances (six starts) and was 3-4 with a 6.21 ERA. He struck out 33 and walked 22 in 37 2/3 innings.

Niman started 16 games in 2024 and was 8-5 with a 6.85 ERA in 71 innings. The left-hander struck out 67 batters and walked 25.

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Two key members of UNC pitching staff taken in MLB Draft on Tuesday

Two more Tar Heel baseball players are off the MLB Draft Board.

I’m convinced that if the North Carolina Tar Heels had better starting pitching, they would’ve made a deeper run in the College World Series.

UNC’s first bit of bad news came weeks before its 2024 season started, when it learned senior pitcher Jake Knapp would miss the year with a UCL (elbow) tear. North thought it initially had a freshman ace in Folger Boaz, then he started to struggle and – later – missed the season’s remainder with a left elbow injury.

With the loss of Knapp and Boaz, though, came opportunity. Two junior Diamond Heel pitchers, by the names of Shea Sprague and Aidan Haugh, took full advantage of their opportunities.

Sprague and Haugh became North Carolina’s number two and three starters. Sprague ended his season with a 3-2 record, 4.23 earned run average and 70 strikeouts, which was second most on the team. Haugh compiled a 4-3 record, with his four victories tied for fourth-most on UNC.

It would be great to have the pair back in Chapel Hill next season, but they’ll be elsewhere – for good reason.

On Tuesday, July 16, Sprague and Haugh were picked in the 2024 MLB Draft.

Sprague, originally from Massachusetts, will play professional baseball for his hometown Red Sox.

Haugh, picked three rounds later, heads up to the Twin Cities and joins a promising AL Central squad.

It’d be a full-circle moment if the pair of former Diamond Heels teammates faced off in the future. Are they the last two to go from North Carolina?

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Jimmy Romano becomes fifth Duke baseball player taken in 2024 MLB draft

The Blue Devils bullpen continued its hot streak in the 2024 MLB draft on Tuesday with Jimmy Romano, the fifth Duke pitcher off the board.

The MLB infatuation with the Duke bullpen continued on Tuesday when the Cincinnati Reds selected Jimmy Romano in the 16th round of the 2024 MLB draft.

Romano, a New Jersey native, made 45 relief appearances for the Blue Devils over the last two seasons. He finished with a career ERA of 4.58, including a personal-best 3.91 this past season, with a combined 2-2 record with one save.

Across his 37.1 innings in a Duke uniform, Romano struck out 47 batters with 36 hits and 18 walks. He took a major step forward in 2024, increasing his strikeouts per nine innings from 9.75 to 12.09 and lowering his WHIP (wins and hits per innings pitched) from 1.83 to 1.26. He even trimmed his opposing batting average from .286 to .242.

Romano became the fifth Duke pitcher taken in the 2024 draft. Jonathan Santucci, Duke’s left-handed ace, went to the New York Mets in the second round and All-ACC closer Charlie Beilenson went to the Seattle Mariners in the fifth round.

Nick Conte and Fran Oschell III also got picked, going to the Kansas City Royals and the Los Angeles Angels in the eighth and 12th rounds, respectively.

100 Duke baseball players have now been drafted into the MLB

With the Los Angeles Angels drafting Fran Oschel III on Tuesday, MLB teams have now drafted 100 former Duke baseball players.

The Duke Blue Devils baseball team, with the Tuesday selection of Fran Oschell III, has now produced 100 MLB draft picks across program history.

Oschell, who went in the 12th round to the Los Angeles Angels, became the fourth pick of the 2024 MLB draft, following Jonathan Santucci (second round to the New York Mets), Charlie Beilenson (fifth round to the Seattle Mariners), and Nick Conte (eighth round to the Kansas City Royals).

Two Duke players have gone in the first round, both of whom left for the MLB within the last 15 years. Marcus Stroman became the first first-round pick in school history back in 2012 when the Toronto Blue Jays took him 22nd overall. Bryce Jarvis repeated the feat when the Diamondbacks took him 18th overall in 2020.

Other notable recent picks include Houston Astros outfielder [autotag]Joey Loperfido[/autotag], a seventh-round pick back in 2021 who finally reached The Show earlier this year, and right-hand pitchers Henry Williams and Marcus Johnson, who went within the first four rounds in 2022.

Outside of an abbreviated 2020 draft, the Blue Devils have now produced at least four MLB draft picks every year since 2018.

Los Angeles Angels become fourth MLB team to draft a Duke pitcher with Fran Oschell III

The Los Angeles Angels became the fourth MLB team to draft a Duke pitcher on Tuesday when they snagged Fran Oschell III in the 12th round.

For the fourth time in three days, an MLB team snagged one of Duke’s pitchers on Tuesday.

During the 12th round of the 2024 MLB draft, the Los Angeles Angels drafted right-hander Fran Oschell III.

After an All-American season in 2023 when he finished with a 0.69 ERA and a 6-0 record in 22 relief appearances, Oschell appeared on every preseason First-Team All-American squad. After all, he averaged 1.68 strikeouts per inning against just 0.92 combined walks and hits per inning.

However, the 2024 season, while impressive, didn’t measure up to his star-making sophomore campaign. He made 22 trips to the mound again, but he only lasted 23.1 innings as opposed to his 39.1 from one season ago. His ERA rose to 6.94 and he ended with no wins and three losses on his ledger.

In all fairness, however, he didn’t give up an earned run in 14 of his 22 appearances. His ERA was 4.43 until he gave up five runs against North Carolina in the final regular-season series and three runs against Oklahoma at the Norman Regional.

His opposing batting average stayed low, only surrendering an opposing batting average of .198, but his strikeouts per nine innings dropped from 15.1 to 8.5.

Oschell joins Jonathan Santucci (second round, New York Mets), Charlie Beilenson (fifth round, Seattle Mariners), and Nick Conte (eighth round, Kansas City Royals) as Blue Devils draft picks in 2024.

Notre Dame baseball commit Brendan Tunink gets selected in MLB draft

Tunink has a big decision ahead of him

It’s always great to see Notre Dame baseball players get drafted into the MLB, but what isn’t as good is when one of the high school commits getting selected.

That happened on Monday as Illinois outfielder and pitcher [autotag]Brendan Tunink[/autotag] was selected in the eighth round by the [autotag]Los Angeles Dodgers[/autotag], and now he has a big decision ahead of him.

Many high school players drafted have spurred the professional ranks and headed off to college to improve their stock. Tunink now is in that position, as the decorated two-way player could go either way. On his X account, the website formerly known as Twitter, he seemed to be very excited about the opportunity with the Dodgers.

Getting selected by a great organization definitely factors into one’s decision, and Tunink has that advantage. We will continue to monitor what his choice will be, but it seems like either one will be prosperous for him.

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Former conference rivals will be Vance Honeycutt’s new teammates

Is there an ACC baseball pipeline to the Baltimore Orioles?

If you thought the Baltimore Orioles have a thing for UNC baseball players, you’re correct.

Baltimore select Diamond Heels all-time great Vance Honeycutt with the 22nd overall pick in this year’s MLB Draft. Last year, the Orioles took North Carolina third baseman Mac Horvath 53rd overall.

Both Honeycutt and Horvath played together during the 2022 and 2023 UNC campaigns, with the duo bringing an ACC Championship to Chapel Hill in 2022. Horvath is now with the Aberdeen Ironbirds, Baltimore’s High-A affiliate, while Honeycutt waits his assignment.

It’s not just Diamond Heels players the Orioles seemingly have an affinity for.

With Baltimore’s second and third picks in the 2024 MLB Draft, they chose Virginia shortstop Griff O’Ferrall (32nd overall) and catcher Ethan Anderson (61st overall).

The Honeycutt selection is obviously a big deal, but what connection do O’Ferrall and Anderson have to UNC?

Honeycutt, O’Ferrall and Anderson all played against each other in the opening game of the College World Series.

Honeycutt was the star of North Carolina-UVA, walking things off with a 2-out single in the ninth inning and delivering the Diamond Heels a 3-2 victory. O’Ferrall and Anderson hit a combined 1-for-7, with Anderson scoring the Cavaliers’ first run and O’Ferrall driving in their second.

If I had to bet anything, there’ll be a bit of friendly trash talk between the Orioles’ new trio.

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Duke baseball coach Chris Pollard reacts to Nick Conte getting drafted

Nick Conte, despite collegiate injuries, heard his name called in the eighth round of the MLB draft, and Chris Pollard couldn’t be happier.

Despite dealing with some injuries that limited his time on the mound in Durham, Nick Conte is headed to the MLB.

The Kansas City Royals picked the right-handed pitcher in the eighth round of the 2024 draft on Monday, making him the third Blue Devil off the board. Duke baseball coach Chris Pollard went to social media to describe how happy he was for his former arm.

“Testament to resilience!” Pollard wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. “(Conte) has shown grit and an unrelenting commitment to process. His best baseball is ahead of him. Go be great.”

Conte, who missed the entire 2023 season due to injury, only made 20 appearances during his four years in Durham. He finished 2024 with a career-best 4.50 ERA after spending six innings on the mound, and he struck out eight batters while allowing one extra-base hit. He only coughed up 14 hits over his entire Blue Devils career with only two going for multiple bases.

Conte joined Jonathan Santucci (second round, New York Mets) and Charlie Beilenson (fifth round, Seattle Mariners) as Blue Devils on the draft board.