San Diego-area baseball players waited through the first day of the 2024 MLB Draft without hearing a local player selected through two rounds and 74 picks. It had been 36 years since the first two rounds came and went without a local player chosen.
The wait ended quickly Monday, when the draft resumed starting with Round 3.
University of San Diego right-hander Josh Randall and UC San Diego right-hander Ryan Forcucci (San Marcos High School) were selected in the third round by the Detroit Tigers and Houston Astros, respectively.
USD had two more players taken in the fifth round, with outfielder Jakob Christian (St. Augustine High School) going to the San Francisco Giants and catcher Ariel Armas to the Chicago Cubs.
Randall, a junior from San Juan Capistrano, started 12 of 13 series openers this season for USD. He went 4-2 with a 3.75 ERA with 84 strikeouts over 72.1 innings, helping the Toreros to an NCAA postseason berth in the Santa Barbara Regional.
Christian hit 26 home runs for the Toreros this season, a year after slugging 28 homers at Point Loma Nazarene. He also batted .364 with 67 RBIs while earning West Coast Conference Player of the Year.
Armas also was among the team’s offensive leaders, batting .298 with six homers and 29 RBIs. What set him apart, however, was his work behind the plate. Armas was selected to the 2024 ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove team as the nation’s top defensive catcher.
Forcucci likely would have been selected higher in the draft had he not been limited to five starts this season because of an injury. He went 2-1 with a 2.16 ERA and 37 strikeouts in 25 innings.
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