2019 MLB Draft Concludes With Program-Record 13 Bruins Selected
June 05, 2019 | Baseball
LOS ANGELES โ The 2019 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft concluded on Wednesday as seven Bruins โ including five members of the 2019 roster โ were selected by MLB teams. That brought UCLA's three-day total of draftees to 13, which represents a new program record and is tied with Vanderbilt for the most picks of any school nationwide this year.
Redshirt junior lefty Justin Hooper was the first UCLA player to go off the board on Wednesday, as the Kansas City Royals selected him in the 14th round. Junior outfielder Jack Stronach went to the San Diego Padres in the 21st round, senior DH/outfielder Jake Pries was taken by the New York Yankees in the 24th round, redshirt senior righty Nate Hadley was picked in the 25th round by Minnesota, and senior infielder Jake Hirabayashi was a 39th round choice by the Twins.
In addition, both Kyle Molnar (26th round, Los Angeles Angels) and Ty Haselman (40th round, Los Angeles Dodgers) were drafted on Wednesday. Both were members of the 2018 squad.
UCLA's 13 draftees this season are the most in program history, besting both the 2006 and 2000 drafts that saw a dozen Bruins selected. This year's total was five more than the program's previous-high under the current format (since 2012), which trimmed the draft down to 40 rounds.
The Bruins had success up and down the draft. UCLA was the only school with three picks on day one, and ended day two tied for the most selections with six. In 15 seasons as head coach, John Savage has now produced 105 draft picks, including 39 within the top-10 rounds. UCLA has 287 all-time MLB draft selections at the close of the 2019 edition.
Three UCLA commits were selected on Wednesday, as pitcher Kevin Holcomb (Glendale College)ย was picked in the 13th round by Houston, infielder Michael Curialle (J Serra Catholic HS) was drafted in the 31st round and catcher Darius Perry (La Mirada HS) was picked in the 38th round, both by Colorado. They joined No. 16 overall selection Corbin Carroll and fifth-rounder Evan Fitterer as Bruin commits to be selected by MLB clubs in the 2019 draft.
Hooper is in his fourth year in the UCLA program, but has been limited to just 2/3 of an inning since the end of the 2017 season due to injuries. As a sophomore in 2017, he was 1-1 with a solid 3.69 ERA and 52 strikeouts in 46 1/3 innings spanning 20 appearances and nine starts. He was ranked as the No. 3 high school prospect by Perfect Game prior to coming to UCLA and was a 25th round pick by Milwaukee out of high school in the 2015 draft.
Stronach has been one of the breakout stars for the Bruins in 2019, posting career-highs across the board while locking down a starting spot in left field. The La Mesa, Calif. native is batting .330 on the season with 14 extra-base hits and 33 RBIs. He was an All-Pac-12 honoree after he hit .383 against league opponents, third-highest among all qualifying hitters. The Helix HS product was a Pac-12 Player of the Week nominee on three separate occasions.
UCLA's primary DH and cleanup hitter, Pries ranks second on the club with a career-high 11 home runs this season. He follows in the footsteps of his father, Jeff Pries, who was a first round selection by the Yankees out of UCLA in the 1984 draft. One of the captains of the 2019 squad, Pries has accrued 162 games played at UCLA and has a career .268/.387/.429 slash line.
Hadley has been one of the key pieces of UCLA's bullpen this year, pitching to a 2.32 ERA in the seventh inning role. His eight wins this season are the most ever by a UCLA reliever under head coach John Savage, and his 4.43 hits allowed per nine innings ratio is second on the team. Hadley's 38 appearances this year rank third in the Pac-12.
One of two true seniors on the roster, Hirabayashi has played in 143 games during his UCLA career, including 77 starts. His best offensive season came as a junior in 2018, as he batted .280 with a .430 on-base percentage over 43 games. The Sherman Oaks, Calif. native is batting .190 in 37 games this year.
UCLA (51-9) continues its 2019 season this weekend by hosting Michigan (44-19) in the Los Angeles Super Regional. The winner of the best-of-three series advances to the College World Series in Omaha. The series will be played Friday through Sunday (if necessary), with each game starting at 6:00 p.m. PT and appearing on ESPN2.
UCLA Baseball's 2019 MLB Draftees
| Name (Pos.) | Round | Pick | Organization |
| Michael Toglia (1B) | 1 | 23 | Colorado Rockies |
| Ryan Garcia (RHP) | 2 | 50 | Texas Rangers |
| Chase Strumpf (2B) | 2 | 64 | Chicago Cubs |
| Ryan Kreidlerย (INF) | 4 | 112 | Detroit Tigers |
| Jack Ralston (RHP) | 7 | 215 | St. Louis Cardinals |
| Jeremy Ydens (OF) | 8 | 243 | Washington Nationals |
| Justin Hooper (LHP) | 14 | 409 | Kansas City Royals |
| Jack Stronachย (OF) | 21 | 623 | San Diego Padres |
| Jake Pries (OF) | 24 | 735 | New York Yankees |
| Nate Hadley (RHP) | 25 | 749 | Minnesota Twins |
| Kyle Molnar (RHP) | 26 | 781 | Los Angeles Angels |
| Jake Hirabayashiย (INF) | 39 | 1169 | Minnesota Twins |
| Ty Haselman (C) | 40 | 1211 | Los Angeles Dodgers |
