Alan Kornspan
Believeland Media
As the Cleveland Guardians head into the All-Star break, they have the best record in the American League at 58-37. In fact, the Guardians lead the Baltimore Orioles (58-38) by .007 percentage points for the best record in the American League.
However, not only did the Guardians have the best record in the American League, they also held the number one overall pick heading into Sunday's Major League Baseball Draft. This was the first time that Cleveland had ever had the number one overall pick in the MLB Draft.
Thus, there has been much speculation amongst Guardians fans on who Cleveland should take with the number one overall MLB Draft pick.
On Sunday night, fans saw the Cleveland Guardians draft Travis Bazzana with the number one overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. It was the first time a second baseman has ever been chosen number one overall in the MLB Draft.
After being drafted number one, Bazzana provided his thoughts on the historic moment.
“Unbelievable, I think that it's just one of those moments that you can't really put into words but the people around me can,” said Bazzana.
“You just feel their energy, and I'm just trying to fathom it, but it's unbelievable, I'm so excited."
After drafting Bazzana number one overall, the Cleveland Guardians President of Baseball Operations, Chris Antonetti talked about choosing Bazzana in the top spot.
“We are thrilled to welcome Travis into the organization as a player and a person,” said Antonetti.
“And we've got a great opportunity to know (Travis), not only over the course of the last few months, but over the course of the past few years.”
“We view him to be a dynamic player. He is a guy that makes really good swing decisions, controls the strike zone really well, rarely swings and misses and can really impact the baseball. And we think he has a chance to impact the game in a variety of ways."
In addition to his offensive ability at the plate, Antonetti also said that Bazzana is a very good base runner as well as player with good defensive skills.
Who Is Travis Bazzana?
Bazzana played baseball collegiately at Oregon State University.
Originally from Hornsby, Australia, the 21 year old began his college baseball career at Oregon State University during the 2021-2022 academic year.
As a freshman, Bazzana hit .306 with 6 home runs and 44 RBI.
During his sophomore season, Bazzana hit .374 with 11 home runs and 55 RBI.
Although Bazzana had a very good first two years, his junior season this past Spring was amazing. In fact, Bazzana hit .407, with 28 home runs and 66 RBI. In addition, Bazzana had a .568 on base percentage.
Additional Guardians Draft Picks
In addition to choosing Bazzana number one overall, the Guardians had two additional draft picks on Sunday night.
With the 36th pick in the MLB Draft, the Guardians chose Braylon Doughty.
Doughty, a right handed pitcher from Murrieta, California, played baseball at Chapparal High School.
The Guardians then drafted catcher, Jacob Cozart, from North Carolina State University with the 48th pick of the MLB Draft.
While at North Carolina State, in three seasons, Cozart hit .287 with 33 home runs and 121 RBI.
With the MLB Draft starting the all star break on Sunday night, the excitement continues for Guardians fans on Monday and Tuesday as Guardians players will participate in the T-Mobile Home Run Derby and the Major League All-Star Game.
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