2024 MLB Draft winners and losers: Braves and Blue Jays get first-round steals, big night for two-way players

On Sunday night at the Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth, Texas, the 2024 MLB Draft began with the first of three days. Picks 1-74 were made Sunday. Rounds 3-10 will follow Tuesday and rounds 11-20 will follow Wednesday.

The Guardians used the first No. 1 selection in franchise history on Oregon State infielder Travis Bazzana, the first Australian-born player ever taken in the first round. Bazzana, our No. 2 draft prospect, slashed .407/.568/.911 with 28 home runs and more than twice as many walks (78) as strikeouts (37) in 60 games this spring.

With the caveat that it will take years to suss out the actual winners and losers of the 2024 draft, here are some immediate reaction winners and losers from Day 1.

Winners: Guardians and Bazzana

When you have the No. 1 pick, and when you go No. 1 overall, you’re automatically winners in my book. Bazzana was our second ranked prospect but he was a worthy pick at No. 1, and he brings needed power to an organization that develops bat-to-ball ability very well. There was no Bryce Harper or Paul Skenes in this draft class, no obvious star No. 1 prospect, but Cleveland still landed a player who figures to anchor their lineup for years to come — and do so very soon — and be a regular at the All-Star Game.

Winner: Charlie Condon and fans of homers

The draft’s top power hitter in Coors Field? You have to love it. Condon is a winner here and so are fans of massive dingers. This year’s Golden Spikes Award winner (baseball’s equivalent of the Heisman Trophy) is going to be extremely fun playing his games a mile up:

The Rockies selected Condon with the No. 3 pick after he hit .433/.556/1.009 with a BBCOR-era record 37 home runs at Georgia this spring. (BBCOR bats are composite bats the NCAA adopted in 2011). He doesn’t figure to spend much time in the minors. We could see Condon mashing taters in Coors Field by the end of next season.

Loser: Nick Kurtz

To be clear, Sunday was a wonderful day for Kurtz and his family. He was selected No. 4 overall by the Athletics and is looking at a life-changing signing bonus (slot value for the No. 4 pick is $8,370,800). I wish him all the best. So why then do I have Kurtz as a loser? Because the poor kid is stuck playing for John Fisher, the worst owner in baseball (the worst owner in all of sports?), and he’s going to have to play his home games in a Triple-A ballpark in Sacramento when he breaks into the big leagues. It’s a shame what’s happening with the A’s. Too bad Kurtz is caught up in it now.

Winners: Blue Jays and Braves

For me, the two best value picks of the first round were East Carolina righty Trey Yesavage to the Blue Jays at No. 20, and Arizona high school lefty Cam Caminiti to the Braves at No. 24. College pitchers with Yesavage’s deep arsenal and track record don’t make it outside the top 15 very often, yet Toronto was able to get arguably the third best college arm in the draft at No. 20. The partially collapsed lung that kept Yesavage out of the ACC tournament may have caused him to slip a bit (he returned in the Regionals a week later and was dynamite). As for Caminiti, he was the best high school pitcher in the draft class, and it’s a Max Fried starter kit. Atlanta developed the actual Max Fried into an ace. Now they’ll try to do it again with Caminiti. He was rumored to be in the mix for a top 10-13 pick or so.

Winner: Vance Honeycutt

Perhaps the best draft match of skill set and organization is North Carolina outfielder Vance Honeycutt going to the Orioles with the No. 22 pick. Honeycutt might be the best defensive player in the draft class, he’s a game-changer in center, and he offers high-end power potential and speed. There are contact and approach concerns, two things the Orioles have proven they are very good at developing. If any team can develop Honeycutt into a 30/30 Gold Glove winner, it’s Baltimore. Great landing spot for Honeycutt given his developmental needs.

Winner: Fans of two-way players

Headlined by Florida’s Jac Caglianone, the No. 6 pick to the Royals, a few two-way talents were selected in the first round. The Tigers took California high schooler Bryce Rainer with the No. 11 pick, and he both pitch and hit as an amateur. Mets first round Carson Benge, an Oklahoma State alum, played the outfield and also closed games for the Sooners. For what it’s worth, Caglianone will begin his career as a two-way player.

Rainer and Benge were both announced as position players, indicating their pitching days are over. Also, I should note the Mariners took switch-pitcher Jurranglo Cijntje (pronounced SAIN-ja) with the No. 15 pick, and he was announced as a switch-pitcher. It’s legit stuff from both sides. Between Caglianone starting his career as a two-player and Cijntje going forward as a switch-pitcher, this was a great draft for fun, unique players.

Winner: The Demon Deacons

Three Wake Forest players were selected within the top 10 picks this year: RHP Chase Burns (No. 2 to Reds), 1B Nick Kurtz (No. 4 to A’s), and IF Seaver King (No. 10 to Nationals). Wake Forest is just the second school to have three players selected within the top 10 picks since the inception of the MLB Draft and the first since Rice in 2004: RHP Phil Humber (No. 3 to Mets), RHP Jeff Niemann (No. 4 to Devil Rays), and RHP Wade Townsend (No. 8 to Orioles). That is, uh, not a great omen. But still a great day for the Demon Deacons, Burns, Kurtz, and King.

Loser: The pace of play

Speaking as someone who loves the pitch clock — it is the best rule change since the DH — the pace of the draft is agonizing. There are approximately five minutes between picks in the first round, though it’s often more as the networks squeeze in commercials. The draft feels interminable at times. Us old heads remember when the entire event was a rapid fire conference call with one pick right after another. If we’re not going to go back to that, can we at least keep it to a tight 2-3 minutes between picks?