NC State Baseball
Four NC State Players Selected on Day Two of MLB Draft
RALEIGH, N.C. – NC State had four players selected on day two of the Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft, which is the first time in program history that more than three players have been chosen among the top-10 rounds.
Junior Brett Kinneman along with seniors Brian Brown, Josh McLain and Brock Deatherage were all selected.
Kinneman was the first Wolfpack player to hear his name called, as he was selected by his home state Pittsburgh Pirates in the seventh round with the 204th pick. The ACC Pitcher of the Year, Brown was next with the 280th pick in the ninth round to the Boston Red Sox.
McLain and Deatherage were drafted with consecutive selections, as the Los Angeles Dodgers chose McLain with the 284th pick in the ninth round and Deatherage was the first pick in the 10thround with the 285th pick by the Detroit Tigers.
Brown, McLain and Deatherage were all selected within six picks.
The Wolfpack’s four selections in the top-10 rounds of the MLB Draft is a first four for the program, eclipsing the previous mark of three achieved on numerous occasions and is tied for the second most among ACC programs.
Under NC State head coach Elliott Avent more than 100 players have been selected in the MLB Draft, as the four players in this year’s event bring the total to 104.
Brett Kinneman | York, Pa. | OF
Third Team Collegiate Baseball & College Sports Madness All-American, First Team All-ACC
Kinneman’s standout junior season earned First Team All-ACC honors and Third Team All-America honors, as he hit 17 home runs to rank fourth in the conference and among the top 25 nationally. He tallied 61 runs batted in (RBI) on the year to tie for third in the ACC and rank among the nation’s best. His 61 RBIs are the most for an NC State player since 2012 when Ryan Matthews had 62. The Wolfpack’s left fielder tied for the team-high with 15 multi-RBI games, highlighted by three games with five or more RBIs. Kinneman compiled a .274 batting average and led the Pack in runs with 52 and 46 walks. He was named to the Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List, D1 Baseball and Perfect Game Midseason All-American, National and ACC Player of the Week twice and NCBWA National Player of the Month for February.
Brian Brown | Glenmoore, Pa. | P
Second Team All-American, ACC Pitcher of the Year, First Team All-ACC
Brown turned in a stellar senior season to become just the second player in NC State baseball history to garner the ACC Pitcher of the Year award. He recorded a 7-2 record complemented by a 2.74 earned run average (ERA), which ranks among the top 10 ACC pitchers. Brown threw two complete games, headlined by closing out last Saturday’s win against Army in the rain. He started 16 games on the mound this season and 61 for his career to break the program record for career starts. Additionally, he finished his Wolfpack tenure with 25 wins to tie for the fifth most in the NC State record books along with Carlos Rodon. Brown went at least five innings in 15 of his 16 starts and NC State has won 13 of the 16 games he started. He is one of 25 semifinalists for the Golden Spikes Award.
Josh McLain | Hiddenite, N.C. | OF
First Team All-ACC
McLain turned in a stellar senior season to lead all individuals in the ACC with 94 hits, which ranks eighth in the NCAA. He logged a team-best .344 batting average to lead the Pack and rank second in the ACC. He’s averaged 1.54 hits per game to pace the conference and rank 17th in the nation. The Wolfpack’s centerfielder recorded at least one hit in 53 of 60 games, highlighted by hitting streaks of 13 and 11 games. McLain’s 29 multi-hit games led the ACC and he also put together an 18-game reached base safely streak. He started every game this season and did not commit an error. McLain charted 12 stolen bases on 15 attempts. He was also drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 14thround last season, but returned to school and improved his stock five rounds.
Brock Deatherage | Burlington, N.C. | OF
Second Team All-ACC
Deatherage’s strong senior season earned the NC State outfielder Second Team All-ACC honors. He logged a .307 batting average, which was the third best on the team. Deatherage hit 14 home runs on the year, as one of five players on the squad with 10 or more home runs. He recorded his first career multi-homer game against UNC-Chapel Hill earlier this season and logged three for the year. He played in 227 career games and started 215 of those contests. He had 15 multi-hit games this year with 12 multi-RBI games. Deatherage finished his Wolfpack career with 223 hits, 159 runs, 109 RBI and a .286 batting average. He was selected in the 29th round of last year’s draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates, but elected to return for his senior year and improved his stock by 19 rounds.