Oregon State second baseman Travis Bazzana has been selected by the Cleveland Guardians with the top pick in Major League Baseball’s draft.
Bazzana is the first Australian to go No.1 in the draft – in fact, no Australian has ever been selected in the first round.
Travis Bazzana has been taken with the No.1 pick in the MLB draft.Credit: AP
A former cricket, rugby and soccer player who came to the United States to play baseball for Oregon State, the 21-year-old hit .407 with 28 homers and 66 RBIs this season.
Baseball’s top pick this year had a slot value of $US10,570,600 (more than $15.6 million) under the bonus pools system that began in 2012.
Loading
Cleveland had the top pick for the first time since the draft began in 1965, winning a weighted lottery in December despite having a 2 per cent chance. The lottery began last year as part of a collective bargaining agreement provision to discourage struggling teams from deliberately trying for a top draft pick by getting rid of veterans.
Teams were to make the first 74 picks on Monday (AEST) at the Cowtown Coliseum, with the remainder of the 20 rounds over the next two days. Cleveland also picked 36th and 48th.
Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred was booed by the roughly 2000 fans on hand when he emerged on stage through the set’s saloon doors.
AP, Reuters
Source Agencies
