NEW ORLEANS – Following a 2024 campaign in which it sent four baseball programs to NCAA Baseball Regionals for the third-straight season and had all four advance to their respective regional finals, the Sun Belt had 19 players selected in the 2024 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft.
With 19 selections, the Sun Belt ran its all-time tally to 853 picks over the three-day affair from July 14-16.
Louisiana junior shortstop Kyle DeBarge (1st, 33rd)—the 2024 Sun Belt Player of the Year and an All-Sun Belt First Team honoree—was the first Sun Belt student-athlete off the board as the 33rd overall pick by the Minnesota Twins—giving the Sun Belt a Day 1 selection in four-straight MLB Drafts.
The 2024 Sun Belt Pitcher of the Year and an All-Sun Belt First Team pick Louisiana junior right-handed pitcher LP Langevin (4th, 105th) was next off the board, going to the Kansas City Royals in the fourth round. Joining him as a fourth-round selection was All-Sun Belt First Team honoree James Madison junior outfielder Fenwick Trimble (4th, 122nd), who was selected by the Miami Marlins.
Another All-Sun Belt First Team selection—Coastal Carolina junior third baseman Sam Antonacci (5th, 140th – Chicago White Sox)—was the first of a pair of Sun Belt student-athletes to hear their names called in the fifth round, alongside Old Dominion junior right-handed pitcher John Holobetz (5th, 156th – Milwaukee Brewers).
Coastal Carolina junior catcher Derek Bender (6th, 188th) was a sixth-round pick by the Minnesota Twins, followed by a pair of South Alabama junior outfielders in the seventh round. Will Turner (7th, 207th) was tapped by the Boston Red Sox, while Joseph Sullivan (7th, 223rd) was picked by the Houston Astros.
Two All-Sun Belt Second Team honorees Southern Miss junior right-handed pitcher Niko Mazza (8th, 238th)—an eighth-round pick by the San Francisco Giants—and Troy senior outfielder Kole Myers (9th, 280th)—a ninth-round pick by the Los Angeles Dodgers—rounded out the Sun Belt’s Day 2 selections.
James Madison junior catcher Jason Schiavone (11th, 343rd) was the first Sun Belt student-athlete selected on Day 3, by the Houston Astros with the 343rd overall pick. Coastal Carolina junior right-handed pitcher Alexander Meckley (12th, 350th) came off the board seven picks later as the Washington Nationals 12th-round selection.
The Seattle Mariners used picks on Sun Belt student-athletes in back-to-back rounds, selecting App State redshirt junior third baseman Austin St. Laurent (14th, 423rd)—an All-Sun Belt First Team honoree—in the 14th round and Georgia Southern redshirt sophomore right-handed pitcher Thomas Higgins Jr. (15th, 453rd) in the 15th round.
Georgia State junior outfielder JoJo Jackson (17th, 511th) and Georgia Southern senior right-handed pitcher Ben Johnson (17th, 512th) were selected with back-to-back 17th-round picks by the New York Yankees and Chicago Cubs, respectively.
A trio of 19th-round selections—James Madison senior right-handed pitcher Joe Vogatsky (19th, 564th – Pittsburgh Pirates), Marshall senior catcher Owen Ayers (19th, 572nd – Chicago Cubs) and Southern Miss junior outfielder Dalton McIntyre (19th, 581st – Atlanta Braves), an All-Sun Belt Second Team pick—rounded out the Sun Belt’s 19-player draft class.
Each of the Sun Belt’s four NCAA Baseball Regional qualifiers produced multiple 2024 MLB Draft selections, led by three apiece from Coastal Carolina and James Madison. Sun Belt regular-season champion Louisiana (2), tournament champion Southern Miss (2), Georgia Southern (2) and South Alabama (2) also boasted multiple draft picks. App State, Georgia State, Marshall, Old Dominion and Troy each had a student-athlete picked, giving 11-of-14 Sun Belt baseball programs representation in this year’s draft class.
The Chicago Cubs (2), Houston Astros (2), Minnesota Twins (2) and Seattle Mariners (2) each selected multiple Sun Belt student-athletes during the 2024 MLB Draft.
2024 MLB Draft PicksKyle DeBarge, Louisiana (1st, 33rd – Minnesota Twins)
LP Langevin, Louisiana (4th, 105th – Kansas City Royals)
Fenwick Trimble, James Madison (4th, 122nd – Miami Marlins)
Sam Antonacci, Coastal Carolina (5th, 140th – Chicago White Sox)
John Holobetz, Old Dominion (5th, 156th – Milwaukee Brewers)
Derek Bender, Coastal Carolina (6th, 188th – Minnesota Twins)
Will Turner, South Alabama (7th, 207th – Boston Red Sox)
Joseph Sullivan, South Alabama (7th, 223rd – Houston Astros)
Niko Mazza, Southern Miss (8th, 238th – San Francisco Giants)
Kole Myers, Troy (9th, 280th – Los Angeles Dodgers)
Jason Schiavone, James Madison (11th, 343rd – Houston Astros)
Alexander Meckley, Coastal Carolina (12th, 350th – Washington Nationals)
Austin St. Laurent, App State (14th, 423rd – Seattle Mariners)
Thomas Higgins Jr., Georgia Southern (15th, 453rd – Seattle Mariners)
JoJo Jackson, Georgia State (17th, 511th – New York Yankees)
Ben Johnson, Georgia Southern (17th, 512th – Chicago Cubs)
Joe Vogatsky, James Madison (19th, 564th – Pittsburgh Pirates)
Owen Ayers, Marshall (19th, 572nd – Chicago Cubs)
Dalton McIntyre, Southern Miss (19th, 581st – Atlanta Braves)