Page 85 - 2024 DBU Baseball Media Guide

2023 SEASON IN REVIEW
program history. Freshman utility player Grant Jay was named a Third Team All-American by the NCBWA and was also a consensus Freshman All-American. Jay compiled a .319 average in his rookie campaign with a team-high 21 home runs and 62 RBI. The Patriots’ Friday night ace, sophomore Ryan Johnson, was tabbed to the NCBWA’s Third Team after posting an 8-4 record and striking out 116 batters, the second-most in a single season in DBU’s Division I era dating back to 2004.
DBU LANDS LEAGUE-HIGH NINE ON ALL-CUSA TEAM
In the Patriots’ first season in Conference USA, DBU led the league with nine All-CUSA selections. Headlining the list of In the Patriots’ first season in Conference USA, DBU led the league with nine All-CUSA selections. Headlining the list of postseason awards were Nathan Humphreys, Grant Jay, Ethan Mann, Dan Heefner, and Micah Posey. Patriot centerfielder Nathan Humphreys was selected as the conference’s Defensive Player, while Jay was named the CUSA Freshman of the Year, and Mann garnered Newcomer of the Year honors. Patriot head coach Dan Heefner was awarded the league’s Keith LeClair Coach of the Year after guiding DBU to the CUSA regular season title. Patriot pitching coach Micah Posey was tabbed as the league’s Assistant Coach of the Year. DBU placed four players on the First Team, including Kyle Amendt, Grant Jay, Ryan Johnson, and Ethan Mann. Second Team selections included Braxton Bragg, Nathan Humphreys, Kodie Kolden, and Brady Rose. Grant Jay was also named to the league’s All-Freshman Team.
RECORD-SETTING EIGHT PLAYERS DRAFTED FROM DBU
The DBU Baseball team saw a school-record eight players selected in the 2023 Major League Draft. The Patriots’ eight draft selections were tied with Arizona State and the University of Tennessee for the fourth-most draft picks in the nation. In the 20-round draft that featured 614 selections, only LSU (13), Wake Forest (10), and Stanford (9) produced more draft picks than DBU in the 2023 MLB Draft.
Three Patriots heard their names called in the top 10 rounds, highlighted by junior right-handed pitcher Braxton Bragg, who was selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the eighth round. DBU closer Kyle Amendt and right-handed reliever Zane Russell went to the Arizona Diamondbacks in the ninth and tenth rounds, respectively. On day three of the draft, Jace Grady was the first Patriot off the board when the Atlanta Braves took him in the 11th round. Redshirt sophomore Bryson Hammer was taken in the 12th round by the Colorado Rockies, followed by junior left- handed reliever Brady Rose in the 13th round by the New York Yankees. Junior catcher Nate Rombach would be selected five rounds later when the Washington National selected him with the first pick in the 18th round. DBU’s final draft selection came 10 picks later when the Arizona Diamondbacks selected junior right-hander Alec Baker.
BRAXTON BRAGG
KYLE AMENDT
ZANE RUSSELL
JACE GRADY
BRYSON HAMMER
BRADY ROSE
NATE ROMBACH
ALEC BAKER
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