Guardians select perhaps the most unique No. 1 pick in MLB Draft history

On Sunday, the Cleveland Guardians selected Oregon State standout Travis Bazzana as the No. 1 pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, genuinely one of the more interesting players to go first overall.

For starters, before stepping on a major league diamond, Bazzana has already made history several times.

Unbelievably, Bazzana is the first second baseman to go No. 1 overall in draft history. He's only the eighth player at the position selected among the top 10 and the highest since the Milwaukee Brewers chose Rickie Weeks with the second pick in 2003.

Likewise, the 21-year-old is the first Australian-born player selected in the first round. Bazzana is now one of only three Aussies to hear their names called at the draft, joining Josh Spence (ninth round, 2010) and Mark Ettes (33rd round, 1989). The remaining 33 players from Australia to make it to the majors were all international signees.

Despite not being born in a baseball hotbed, Bazzana had the sport in his blood from an early age.

He began his path to becoming the top pick playing tee ball before then moving on to Little and Junior League. Before graduating high school, Bazzana performed in front of major league scouts and played in Australia's top professional league, the ABL, where he debuted at age 15 in 2018.

Bazzana also gained valuable experience playing other sports. He captained his team to a state championship in cricket, which has more than a few similarities with baseball.

Oregon State assistant coach Joey Wong told Brian Hamilton of The Athletic that Bazzana's reps with a cricket bat helped him become one of the best decision-makers at the plate in the country and an " elite manager " of the strike zone.

In 2022, Bazzana made the jump to college baseball in America, where he wasted little time getting acclimated. After three seasons with Beavers, he left as the program's all-time leader in hits (251), walks (180), stolen bases (66) and home runs (45).

But, before continuing his path to the majors, Bazzana saved the best for last. In 2024, he had arguably his best collegiate season, earning Pac-12 Player of the Year honors after batting .407/.568/.911 with 28 home runs, 66 RBI and 76 walks in 60 games (296 plate appearances).

A well-rounded left-handed bat with power and speed to boot, Bazzana seemingly has all the tools to be a successful major leaguer. After overcoming numerous obstacles to get to draft day, he shared maybe the most essential trait to his success.

"I was always competitive. That's the one thing that I think was the base for me to go far in whatever I was pursuing," Bazzana told Jeff Passan of ESPN. "A competitive nature to where I was going to find a way to be a little bit better than the next guy or the guy next to me or whoever I was competing with."