The first day of the 2024 MLB Draft has come to an end. It is a dream come true for many players who have worked hard to achieve this goal. Several international players were selected in the first two rounds of this year’s draft.
The first pick made by the Cleveland Guardians was used to select the second baseman from Oregon State, Travis Bazzana. A native of Hornsby, Australia, Bazzana became the first Australian-born player to be taken first overall and the first Australian-born player to be taken in the first round. He began his career in Australia and played three seasons for the Sydney Blue Socks of the Australian Baseball League. Bazzana then moved to Corvallis to play for the Beavers, where he batted .360 with 45 home runs during his three seasons, including a .407 average in 2024. Bazzana is also the first second baseman ever to be selected with the first overall pick.
The Cincinnati Reds selected another international player with the very next pick. The Reds selected pitcher Chase Burns from Wake Forest. Burns was born in Naples, Italy, and grew up in Tennessee. This season, he boasted an impressive 10-1 record with a 2.70 ERA for the Demon Deacons.
The St. Louis Cardinals selected JJ Wetherholt with the seventh pick. The shortstop out of West Virginia was born in Baltimore, Maryland, and is Korean-American. His grandmother was born in South Korea. A hamstring injury cut his junior season in half, but Wetherholt still impressed, posting a career batting average of .370 with 29 homers.
New St. Louis Cardinal (#8 overall) JJ Wetherholt is Korean-American 🇺🇸🇰🇷
His grandmother is from South Korea pic.twitter.com/CRsCFXm66w
— Shawn Spradling (@Shawn_Spradling) July 15, 2024
The Seattle Mariners made the final pick of an international player in the first round by selecting pitcher Jurrangelo Cijntje from Mississippi State. Cijntje, 21, was born in the Netherlands but grew up primarily in Willemstad, Curaçao. Cijntje pitched for Curaçao in the 2016 Little League World Series as a switch pitcher. In his second season with the Bulldogs, he went 8-2 with a 3.87 ERA.
Two international players were taken in the second round. The Tampa Bay Rays took Émilien Pitre, a second baseman from Kentucky who was born in Quebec, Canada. Pitre was a member of the Canadian Junior National Team in 2020. The Arizona Diamondbacks selected Ivan Luciano, a catcher from Puerto Rico. Luciano is 17 years old and was committed to Miami, Ohio.
The Arizona Diamondbacks select high school catcher Ivan Luciano 64th overall, making him the first Puerto Rican-born player drafted this year 🇵🇷 pic.twitter.com/LqgNvh5U5z
— Shawn Spradling (@Shawn_Spradling) July 15, 2024
It will be a special night for players from all across the country and world as baseball continues to prove itself as a global game. You can watch the rest of the MLB Draft over the next two days at MLB.com.
Photo Credit: Travis Bazzana is announced as the first round draft pick for the Cleveland Guardians at the 2024 MLB Draft at Cowtown Coliseum on July 14, 2024 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images)
