4 Cal Poly baseball players picked in MLB draft, including former Paso Robles High star

Four Cal Poly baseball players have been selected in the 2024 Major League Baseball draft held this week — including former Paso Robles High standout Jakob Wright.

Wright, the first Mustang to be selected in this year’s draft, went in the fourth round to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday.

Wright — a left-handed pitcher who posted a 9-3 record and 2.97 ERA in 2024 in his third year in the Cal Poly program — was the 128th overall selection. Wright has an 11-4 overall career Cal Poly record.

Last season, Wright limited opposing batters to a .229 batting average, ranking him No. 8 in the Big West, and struck out 101 batters in 88 innings pitched.

At Paso Robles High, Wright was a four-year varsity player under then head coach Jonathan Thornhill, earning all-Mountain League honors in 2021 as a senior when he hit .388.

Other Cal Poly draftees included Mustangs Ryan Stafford , a standout catcher taken by the Baltimore Orioles in the fifth round on Monday; righty pitcher Steven Brooks selected in the 11th round by the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday; centerfielder Jake Steels (a former Righetti High School star in Orcutt) picked in the 18th round by the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday.

In his third season at Cal Poly, Stafford posted a .368 batting average with six home runs and a team-leading 46 RBIs, according to the Cal Poly baseball website.

Stafford, of Folsom, broke Cal Poly’s career doubles record, which now stands at 60. Defensively, Stafford led the Big West by throwing out 23 would-be base stealers.

Steels, an Allan Hancock College transfer, led Cal Poly with a a .381 average as a senior. He posted 82 hits, including 12 doubles, one triple and a team-leading eight home runs. He drove in 34 runs batting leadoff and stole eight bases in 10 attempts.

Jake’s father, James Steels, is a former MLB player who was drafted out of Santa Maria High School.

Steven Brooks, a junior right-hander, posted a 5-7 record and 5.14 ERA in 2024 as Cal Poly’s Saturday starter, according to Cal Poly’s website. Brooks struck out 72 batters over 82-1/3 innings, issued just 23 walks and held opposing batters to a .248 average.

Cal Poly also had four players drafted in 2022, including Brooks Lee and Drew Thorpe , both currently playing in the Major Leagues with the Twins and White Sox, respectively.

Last year’s two Cal Poly draftees were pitchers Derek True (18th round, Houston Astros) and Bryce Warrecker (20th round, New York Yankees).