(Fort Worth) Australian Travis Bazzana was selected by the Cleveland Guardians with the first overall pick in the Major League Baseball draft on Sunday.
A former cricket, rugby and soccer player who came to the United States to play baseball at Oregon State University, Bazzana batted .407 with 28 home runs and 66 RBIs this season.
The 21-year-old became the first Australian and first second-baseman in history to be selected at number one.
“It’s an opportunity to impact a lot of baseball players and a lot of people in Australia. I hope it changes the way baseball is viewed there,” Bazzana said.
In three seasons with Oregon State, Bazzana batted .360 with 45 home runs, 165 RBIs, 180 walks and 66 stolen bases.
Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti said the team made its decision Sunday.
The first pick in this year’s draft is worth $10,570,600 under the bonus system that began in 2012.
The Guardians held the first pick in the draft for the first time since its inception in 1965.
Three players from Wake Forest University were selected in the top 10. Right-handed pitcher Chase Burns was selected second overall by the Cincinnati Reds, first baseman Nick Kurtz was selected fourth overall by the Oakland Athletics, and third baseman/outfielder Seaver King rounded out the top 10.
Burns, 21, was 10-1 with a 2.70 ERA and 191 strikeouts in 100 innings of work this season over 16 starts.
The Colorado Rockies, who were in the third spot, set their sights on hulking third baseman Charlie Condon. At six-foot-six, Condon led the NCAA this year with a .433 batting average and 37 four-base hits.
Kurtz had a .306 batting average, with 22 home runs, 57 RBIs and 78 walks.
Left-handed pitcher Hagen Smith, who underwent Tommy John surgery at age 16 in 2019, was selected fifth overall by the Chicago White Sox.
At 20e At the top of the ladder, the Toronto Blue Jays have signed right-handed pitcher Trey Yesavage from East Carolina University.