Cleveland makes Bazzana top pick in MLB draft

Monday, July 15, Fort Worth, Texas – The Cleveland Guardians made Corvallis Knights alum Travis Bazzana (2021) of Oregon State the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 Major League Baseball Draft, held at the Cowtown Coliseum as part of MLB’s All-Star Weekend.

“We view him to be a dynamic player,” Guardians president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti told ESPN.com. “He’s a guy who makes really good swing decisions, controls the strike zone really well, rarely swings and misses, and can really impact the baseball.

“We think he has a chance to impact the game in a variety of ways.”

Bazzana became the second Knights’ alum to go 1/1 in the draft. Baltimore all-star catcher Adley Rutschman, who also played for Corvallis in 2016 before enrolling at OSU, had that honor in 2019.

According to ESPN.com, the No. 1 pick is valued at $10.57 million. Antonetti said the Guardians and Bazzana’s representatives have agreed to terms on his signing bonus, pending the finalization of a few details.

Bazzana, his family and some friends watched the draft from the Hotel Corvallis Omaha Room at Goss Stadium and then held a small post-draft party at the Corvallis Club, where he was interviewed remotely by MLB.com.

“I never really knew if [No. 1] was possible, and at least a couple years ago I didn’t really think that that was going to be in the picture,” he said. “It probably only came into the picture upon the Cape Cod [League] last year.

“I just tried to go out and have a great year. This was a byproduct of it. I’m just stoked right now.”

Cleveland projects him as a second baseman but Antonetti told ESPN.com that Bazzana is athletic enough to play other positions, such as outfield, if needed. Cleveland currently has an outstanding second baseman in Andres Gimenez.

Bazzana starred for the Knights prior to his freshman year at OSU. He led the West Coast League in hitting with an incredible .429 average, was the WCL’s Most Valuable Player, earned first-team all-WCL honors and the league’s Top Prospect Award.

He helped lead the Knghts to their fifth consecutive WCL championship. Bazzana led the WCL in hits (81), runs (46), total bases (112) and slugging percentage (.593); tied for first in triples (5); was second in doubles (18) and tied for third in stolen bases (18).

Bazzana went on to a standout career at OSU, helping lead the beavers to three NCAA tournament appearances and two Super Regionals.

He earned Freshman All-American honors in 2022 and was a second-team All-American in 2023 as a sophomore. In 2024, he hit .407 and placed second to Georgia’s Charlie Condon for the Golden Spikes Award.

The 21-year old left-handed batter is the first Australian to be selected in the first round of the draft. He grew up in Sydney, Australia, and graduated from Turramurra High School. He is also the first second baseman to be picked 1/1.

He will join another former Knights/OSU standout in the Cleveland organization, outfielder Steven Kwan. Kwan played for the Knights in 2016 following his freshman season at OSU and was promoted to the Guardians in 2022 after three years in their minor-league system.

The Knights are well-represented at this week’s All-Star festivities. Rutschman and Kwan will start for the American League in Tuesday’s All-Star Game. Alum Tyler Anderson (2009) of the Los Angeles Angels, who played at Oregon, is also on the American League squad.