Wake Forest makes history at MLB Draft

FORT WORTH, Texas — Three Wake Forest baseball players were drafted in the first round of the MLB Draft on July 14.

Chase Burns became Wake Forest’s highest-ever draft pick when he was selected No. 2 overall by the Cincinnati Reds. He is the second Demon Deacon in the past two years drafted by the Reds, joining 2023 No. 7 overall pick Rhett Lowder — a fellow right-handed pitcher.

Burns was joined by two Wake Forest teammates in the top 10.

First baseman Nick Kurtz was selected No. 4 by the Oakland Athletics to make Wake Forest just the fifth team ever with two top-5 picks, joining: LSU in 2023, UCLA in 2011, Rice in 2004 and Arizona in 1978.

Shortstop Seaver King was the final Demon Deacon selected in the first round by going No. 10 to the Washington Nationals.

Wake Forest is just the second program in history to have three top-10 selections; the only other school to accomplish this feat was Rice University in 2004. The last ACC team with at least three first-round draft picks was Louisville in 2016.

“I couldn’t be more proud of Chase Burns, Nick Kurtz and Seaver King,” said Wake Forest head coach Tom Walter. “Today was the culmination of a lot of hard work and sacrifice. These guys have helped transform Wake Baseball into a destination program and a program known for player development. I can’t wait to see what the future holds for these transformational Deacs.”

Chase Burns

The right-handed pitcher is Wake Forest’s 11th first round selection all-time and the fifth in the last four years, joining new teammate Rhett Lowder (2023), Brock Wilken (2023), Ryan Cusick (2021) and Jared Shuster (2020). His No. 2 selection broke the record set by Kyle Sleeth, who was picked No. 3 overall in 2003.

“Chase Burns has the chance to be a true No.1 for the Cincinnati Reds,” Walter said. “Between his electric arm and compete gene the Reds got what I believe is the best arm in the class and Chase will be a valuable addition to the Reds staff for years to come. I’m so happy that he gets to join Rhett Lowder in the Cincinnati organization and look forward to watching that duo come up together.”

Burns was the 2024 ACC Pitcher of the Year and earned First Team All-American Honors from the following organizations: D1 Baseball, Perfect Game, Baseball America, American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) and National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA).

He led the nation in strikeouts with 169, which ranked No. 5 in ACC history and No. 1 in Wake Forest history. Burns set another school record when he was named ACC Pitcher of the Week six times in 2024.

In just the month of May, Burns compiled 57 strikeouts to just five walks for a 11.40 K/BB ratio, and a 19.73 K/9 ratio to go along with a 0.34 ERA in four starts.

The righty finished his career as the active Division-I baseball strikeout leader with 408 career strikeouts, which leads fellow first-rounder in Arkansas’ Hagen Smith (360 career strikeouts) by 48 strikeouts.

Nick Kurtz

The first baseman is Wake Forest’s 12th all-time first-round selection and the sixth in the past four years. He is also the third-highest selection in program history behind Burns and Sleeth.

“Nick Kurtz is a true pro,” head coach Tom Walter said. “The Oakland Athletics drafted someone who’s work ethic, ability to make those around him better and his consistency a sure fire big leaguer. He hits the ball to all fields for power and average while also being an elite defender.”

Kurtz is the sixth Demon Deacon ever drafted by the Athletics. He will join former Wake players Ryan Cusick and Colin Peluse in the organization.

Kurtz ranked tied for seventh among active Division-I players with 61 home runs. He also moved into second all-time in program history as he paced the team with 22 homers on the year.

Kurtz held a staggering .510 career on-base percentage over the course of his three seasons at Wake. He was the only active player in Division-I to play more than 150 career games and have a career OBP of .500 or better. This season he had a team-best .531 on-base percentage, following up his sophomore campaign where Kurtz had an eye-popping .527 OBP.

He led the nation with 78 bases on balls, or 1.44 per game, in 2024. on balls per game. He became the Wake Forest program record holder with 189 free passes throughout his career, surpassing Pat Blair with 180 between 2010-13.

Some of Kurtz’s 2024 Honors included: First Team All-ACC, Second Team All-American by D1 Baseball and Perfect Game, Third Team All-American by ABCA and NCBWA, ACC All-Tournament Team and two-time ACC Player of the Week.

Seaver King

King rounded out Wake’s three top-10 selection by going No. 10 to the Nationals. He is the fifth-highest Demon Deacon selection in history and the fourth top-10 pick in the past two seasons.

“The Nationals got a dynamic personality and a dynamic athlete in Seaver King,” Walter said. “His bat speed, raw athleticism and upside put him in a class by himself. This guy is going to be in the big leagues very quickly.”

King was one of three Demon Deacons to start all 60 games. He led the team in hits (78) and ranked second in both RBIs (64) and runs (59).

The junior notched 16 home runs and finished the season with a .308/.377/.577 slash line. King recorded a hit in 48 games and had 24 multi-hit performances, while also adding 21 games with multiple RBIs and eight games with three or more RBIs.

King successfully reached base in 31 straight games (April 2-May 25). He also posted an 11-game hit streak (April 6-23) and 16-game hit streak (April 27-May 24).

King was a semifinalist for the Dick Howser Trophy, which is presented annually to the top college baseball player. He was also named to the All-ACC Third Team.