The Major League Baseball Draft took place Sunday through Tuesday, and a total of 16 Canadians were selected. Let’s take a look.
The first Canadian chosen was outfielder Dante Nori of Toronto, Ontario. Nori was selected in the first round, 27th overall, by the Philadelphia Phillies out of Northville High School in Michigan. Dante Nori is the son of Micah Nori, who was an assistant coach for the Toronto Raptors from 2009 to 2013. Before being an assistant coach, Micah Nori was an assistant intern and advance scout for the Raptors.
The Tampa Bay Rays chose Canadians in the second and third round. In the second round, 58th overall, second baseman Emilen Pitre of Repentigny, Quebec was taken out of the University of Kentucky. Then in the third round, 94th overall, the Rays selected catcher Nathan Flewelling of Innisfail, Alberta out of St. Joseph High School in Red Deer. Flewelling has been playing with the Sylvan Lake Gulls of the Western Canadian Baseball League.
In the fourth round, the Kansas City Royals selected pitcher L.P. Langevin of Quebec City, Quebec with the 105th pick out of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. Langevin is best known for his 106 strikeouts in 62 2/3 innings in 2024.
In the sixth round, the Oakland Athletics picked pitcher Josiah Romeo of Milton, Ontario out of Mayfield Secondary School. The next Canadian was not taken until the 12th round when the Cleveland Guardians selected pitcher Sean Heppner of Vancouver, British Columbia 355th overall. This past season for the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds, Heppner had 107 strikeouts. Also in the 12th round, the Miami Marlins selected another British Columbian, catcher Connor Caskenette of Duncan out of Purdue University, 364th overall. Two picks later at number 366, the Rays selected their third Canadian by drafting shortstop Jack Lines of Okotoks, Alberta out of the Okotoks Dawgs Academy.
Then in the 14th round, 406th overall, the Oakland Athletics selected lefthanded pitcher Ryan Magdic of Beamsville, Ontario out of Missouri University. Also in the 14th round, 429th overall, the Baltimore Orioles selected pitcher Cohen Achen of Calgary, Alberta out of Lindsey Wilson College in Columbia, Kentucky.
The next Canadian takes was in the 17th round, 497th overall, as the Kansas City Royals selected pitcher Dane Burns of Dryden, Ontario out of Mississippi State University. Also in the 17th round, the Miami Marlins picked outfielder Micah McDowell of Kentville, Nova Scotia out of Oregon State University, 514th overall.
In the 19th round, three Canadians were selected. The St. Louis Cardinals picked shortstop Brendan Lawson of Toronto 561st overall out of P27 Academy in South Carolina. The Cincinnati Reds then picked pitcher Owen Pote of Sherwood Park, Alberta out of the Western Canadian Baseball League. Pote will be pitching next season at Barton Community College in Kansas. This draft pick will forever have personal significance. That is because my brother Geoff Freeborn, is the Western Canadian scout for the Reds, and Pote is the first player the Reds have taken in Geoff’s area. Then at 570 in the 19th round, the San Diego Padres drafted pitcher Vicarte Domingo of Vancouver, British Columbia out of the UBC Thunderbirds. Like Pote, Domingo has an Alberta connection as he pitches for the Edmonton Riverhawks of the West Coast League. Finally, in the 20th round, the Atlanta Braves selected outfielder Eric Hartman of St. Albert, Alberta, 611th overall. Hartman attends Holy Trinity Academy in Okotoks, plays for the Okotoks Dawgs of the WCBL, and is set to play next season at the University of Michigan.
