After choosing Australian-born Oregon State second baseman Travis Bazzana with the No. 1 overall pick of the MLB draft , the Guardians selected right-handed pitcher Braylon Doughty and catcher Jacob Cozart on Sunday night.
Cleveland took Doughty at No. 36 overall out of Chaparral High School in Temecula, California, with a competitive-balance pick.
The 36th-ranked prospect by MLB.com, Doughty is an Oklahoma State University commit with fastball velocity up to 97 mph. Doughty is listed as 6 feet, 1 inch and 196 pounds.
Doughty, 18, finished the 2024 season with a 4-3 record, a 1.11 ERA, 85 strikeouts, 10 walks and 28 hits allowed in 50⅓ innings. He limited opponents to a .155 batting average.
"Nice blend of athleticism, power, feel, ability to spin the ball, and we really like his prospects to remain a starter in the future," Guardians senior vice president of scouting Paul Gillispie said on Zoom. "He was actually a two-sport athlete, played some football. Actually up until a couple of years ago, he was actually a catcher.
"He just has a really good feel already for his delivery and already for his arm action that he picked it up sort of naturally. That coupled with just the ability to make the ball do different things and the shapes that he can create ... how advanced he is already in those areas is something that we think is really attractive about him as a prospect."
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With their third and final pick of Day 1, the Guardians took North Carolina State University's Cozart in the second round (No. 48 overall).
Cozart, 21, is a 6-3, 222-pound left-handed hitter and the 42nd-ranked prospect by MLB.com.
A first-team All-ACC selection as a junior last season, Cozart hit .305 with 19 home runs, 54 RBIs, 60 runs scored and a 1.038 OPS in 2024. A native of Orlando, Florida, Cozart had a .994 fielding percentage and committed just three errors this past season. His father, Craig, is a former longtime head coach for the High Point University baseball team.
"Our scouts really his ability to catch, really like his ability to receive, so really good catch-and-throw skills, and we think he'll be able to remain in the catcher position for a long time," Gillispie said. "Offensively, he showed really solid year over year progression in terms of his ability to manage the strike zone. His walks went up and showed pretty good power as well. So when you take all those things together, you have a guy who's going to be able to stay behind the plate, control the strike zone and hit for some power as well."
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Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich .
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: MLB draft 2024: Cleveland Guardians pick pitcher Braylon Doughty, catcher Jacob Cozart
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