Australia-native Bazzana chosen No. 1 by Guardians

Travis Bazzana finds himself in a place unprecedented in the history of Cleveland baseball — he's the first player ever picked number one overall by this franchise in the MLB Draft. The hope is that the next couple decades will feature a ballplayer who lives up to the hype. "We are thrilled to welcome Travis into the organization," president of baseball operations Chris Antonetti told reporters via Zoom after the selection. "... We view him to be a dynamic player. He's a guy that makes really good swing decisions, controls the strike zone really well, rarely swings and misses, and can really impact the baseball." The Guardians selected first on Sunday night thanks to winning last December's draft lottery. Cleveland only had a 2% chance of earning the No. 1 pick and beat out eight teams with better odds for the right to take whoever they wanted in 2024's First-Year Player Draft. Bazzana, a 21-year old Australian, was their choice. The left-handed hitting second baseman played three seasons of college baseball at Oregon State. "I'm just stoked right now," Bazzana told Ohio media after being chosen. "I don't remember ever putting a different answer to 'What's your dream job?' other than Major League Baseball player." The last player Cleveland selected from Oregon State? Steven Kwan, who was a fifth-round choice in 2018. "Steven reiterated how great a teammate he is, how well-respected he is," Antonetti said. "There are 100s of stories of how good of a person and teammate he is." "Kwanny is my only contact in that clubhouse, and that guy is one of the best people I've been around on a baseball field," Bazzana added. "He's just an incredible human, and he's gotten better and better since being in the big leagues with the Guardians." In Bazzana's third and final season with the Beavers, he batted .407 with 16 doubles, 28 home runs and 16 stolen bases. He was the 2024 Pac-12 Player of the Year and is Oregon State's career leader in hits, runs, doubles, homers, walks and stolen bases. Bazzana is the second No. 1 overall pick out of Oregon State after the Baltimore Orioles chose catcher Adley Rutschman first in 2019. "Ultimately, we see him having a totality of ingredients to be a really successful hitter," Antonetti said. "... When he does choose to swing, he makes elite-level contact. What's really grown in his game the last year or so is the ability to impact and drive the ball." Bazzana traveled a rare path for an Australian ballplayer — he was the first player from Down Under to play college baseball at a Power 5 school in 40 years, according to ESPN. The potential superstar grew up in Hornsby, about a half-hour northwest of Sydney. He began playing in the Australian Baseball League, a winter league that features grown men including minor leaguers, when he was just 15. "To think about a young man who from the time he was a teenager to think about the impact he could have on others to elevate all of Australian baseball based on what he might be able to achieve… is exceedingly impressive for anybody, let alone a teenager," Antonetti said. Bazzana was MVP of the Cape Cod League between his sophomore and junior seasons at Oregon State, which meant he stood out among the country's best college players on a consistent basis last summer. "He has been relentless from the time he was 3 years old to take advantage of every resource available to him to be the best baseball player he could possibly be," Antonetti said, specifying Bazzana's use of advanced metrics, mental strengthening routines and sleep habits. The 6-foot tall Bazzana will likely be a second baseman at the professional level, although he has also played some outfield at Oregon State. "We think he's really athletic and believe he can be a very good defensive second baseman in time," Antonetti said. Antonetti said the Guardians weren't sure who their selection would be until a couple hours before the draft. Bazzana watched the proceedings from Corvallis, Oregon, surrounded by his family and friends, including his two older brothers, his parents, two aunts and a number of mentors who had flown in from Australia. "This is the perfect step to put me and other guys on the map," Bazzana said. "The next 15-year old kid (from Australia) can set their standards a little higher." Bazzana, as a smaller hitter with good plate discipline who packs surprising pop at the plate, fits the mold of a number of recent Guardians standouts. "I know how consistently successful the organization has been over years," Bazzana said. "I know how smart and in-depth and well-resourced the organization is from the top… I know that it's a quality environment. I know they're young. They play the game with fire. It's a lot of things that tick boxes in my head and make me really excited to be a Guardian." Being the first overall pick also brings with it plenty of pressure — to get to the big leagues quickly, to be an All-Star, to lead the franchise to great heights. Bazzana, for his part, seems to have the perfect mindset to handle that. "The pressure obviously grows with this," he said. "I think it's grown every step of the way. There wasn't much pressure as a 15, 16-year old in Australia, and there wasn't much pressure as an incoming freshman at Oregon State. Nobody really expected much from the Australian kid. I think the pressure rises when you start seeing your name rise with it. "When I played in the Cape Cod League, then people start to talk about you in this kind of picture and pressure rises. And then in the spring, you're expected to go out and perform. There was pressure, and obviously it continues to grow, and it'll grow when I make my big league debut, and it'll grow as everything happens. That's just a part of it. "I think I'm focused on the process and have the right people around me enough to where those external pressures don't usually have much of an effect. They just continue to motivate me and keep me focused on the right things." Still to come The Guardians made two more picks Sunday night, Nos. 36 and 48 overall. Both selections were made after press time. The MLB Draft will continue Monday and Tuesday, with Rounds 3-10 on the draft's second day and Rounds 11-20 taking place on the final day. --- Travis Bazzana college stats Three seasons at Oregon State Year Avg. 2B HR SB 2022 .306 16 6 14 2023 .374 20 11 36 2024 .407 16 28 16