Bourne saw four of its former players hear their name called in Round 1 of the 2025 MLB Draft on Sunday — it didn’t stop there for ex-Braves.
After the quartet of Liam Doyle, Marek Houston, Ethan Conrad and Caden Bodine went off the board, four more players that once suited up for the Braves went on Night 1 of the draft.
The strong showing continued, as by the time Round 20 concluded, the Braves had 26 total selections across several different MLB squads.
The first Brave of the non-first round selections off of the board was Vanderbilt pitcher J.D. Thompson, who was picked in the second round at No. 59 overall to the Milwaukee Brewers. He spent the 2024 campaign with Bourne, where he boasted a 2-1 record with a 1.93 ERA through five games, posting 18 strikeouts.
The next Brave off the board was another pitcher, as Griffin Hugus was picked in the third round at No. 91 to the Seattle Mariners. He played for Bourne in 2024 after time with Cincinnati, where he netted a 2-0 record with a 2.31 ERA in 11 games pitched. Hugus rounded out his collegiate career with Miami.
It was two pitchers in a row for former Bourne players getting selected with Thompson and Hugus. The run of hurlers would continue with the next Brave off the board as Ben Jacobs was selected in Round 3 at pick No. 98. The southpaw from Arizona State appeared in one game for the Braves in 2023 where they won the Championship Series.
The group of four rounded out the former Braves that were selected on the first day, but many more achieved MLB dreams in Rounds 4-20, starting with Mason Neville.
Neville spent two seasons at Arkansas and one Oregon before heading to Bourne in 2024, and after being a Golden Spike Semifinalist in 2025, Neville is headed to the show. He was picked No. 114 in Round 4 to the Cincinnati Reds. During his summer with Bourne, he appeared in 12 games where he walked seven times and recorded four hits.
With Cameron Nelson being selected in the fifth round at No. 138 overall to the Colorado Rockies, it marked the third former Brave to play for Wake Forest to be picked. The outfielder appeared in two games for Bourne in 2024 where he tossed 1 ⅔ innings as a pitcher.
The next Brave picked played for Bourne both in 2023 and 2024, as Adonys Guzman got the nod at No. 144 overall in Round 5 with the Pittsburgh Steelers making the call. He spent time at Boston College before transferring to play two seasons at Arizona, and started in eight games at catcher for the Braves.
Another player from Wake Forest went next, as Joe Ariola was picked at No. 213 in Round 7 by the Arizona Diamondbacks. He pitched in eight games for Bourne in 2024, boasting a 2-1 record where he recorded 28 strikeouts.
It then became consecutive pitchers with Will McCausland going in the seventh round at No. 222 overall to the Cleveland Guardians. The right-handed hurler out of Ole Miss suited up for the Braves in 2024, netting a 2-0 record in his four games played with 21 strikeouts.
He played his collegiate ball on the West Coast at Arizona State, and a team from the same side of the country decided to take a chance on him as Isaiah Jackson was chosen at No. 229 in the eighth round by the Los Angeles Angels. During the 2024 campaign with the Braves, he played in 25 games, accumulating 15 walks, 12 RBIs and 11 hits.
Ben Bybee was next, a pitcher from Arkansas, who was selected at No. 236 in Round 8 by the San Francisco Giants. Last summer with the Braves, he appeared in one game and totaled one out.
Sandwiched between his time at the University of Pennsylvania and Texas A&M was a season at Bourne, as Wyatt Henseler, a member of the 2022 squad was selected in the ninth round at pick No. 261 by the Washington Nationals. During his time with the Braves, he totaled 19 hits, eight RBIs and eight walks in the 28 games he played in.
The first member of the 2025 and current squad would follow with Andrew Healy hearing his name called by the Brewers in the ninth round at pick No. 275. The pitcher from Duke didn’t appear in any games as a Brave.
Brady Aftim from the 2023 group was next, getting the call at pick No. 384 in the 13th round by the Reds. He attended UCONN for college, and during his time at Bourne he appeared in 11 games, including a regular season where he posted a 1.80 ERA in nine contests.
There was some time removed from the next Brave, but Gage Harrelson went in Round 16 at pick No. 469 to the Angels. The outfielder was on the Cape during 2023, where he batted. 227 and totaled 12 walks, 11 stolen bases and 10 RBIs.
The next member of the current Bourne roster went off the board next, as Jonathan Stevens was selected at Round 16 at pick No. 470. The pitcher from UAB, who spent time with Bourne last summer as well, started off his collegiate career at Alabama and has been a dominant force on the mound this year with a .82 ERA through six appearances with 13 strikeouts.
Another pitcher from the 2025 group followed with Derrick Smith going Round 17 and No. 497 overall to the Colorado Rockies. He pitched 9 ⅓ innings in five games and struck out 12 batters.
Bryce Molinaro went off the board to the Nationals at pick No. 501 in the 17th round. The Penn State third baseman played in six games for the Braves, and made a sliding grab in shallow right field against Chatham on the road for the final out.
Griffin Stieg will join Hugus on the Mariners, getting picked No. 542 in Round 18. The pitcher played for the Braves in 2023 and did his collegiate ball at Virginia Tech.
The numerous pitchers being selected continued with Matthew Potok going Round 18 and pick No. 551 to the Philadelphia Phillies. He played for Coastal Carolina, and punched out three hitters during his time with the Braves this season.
Another pitcher from the 2025 team went next, as Zane Petty from Texas Tech got the call right after Potok at pick No. 552 in the 18th round. He pitched in four games, where he recorded a 2-1 record.
Justin West rounded out the group, as the left-handed hurler from Louisville was the final Brave off of the board with the New York Yankees taking him in Round 18 at No. 554 overall. He played for the Braves in 2024, where he pitched in eight games and posted a 3.00 ERA.
From the first round to all the way to the eighteenth round, it was 26 Braves that heard their name called, marking another successful draft that featured Bourne being represented at the highest level.
