On the final day of the 2024 MLB draft, two more Indiana players came off the board.
Junior catcher Brock Tibbitts and sophomore right-handed pitcher Brayden Risedorph were the final members of IU’s roster to be selected. The pair of Hoosiers were taken in the 13th round (397th overall) by Toronto, and 20th round (602nd overall) by the Chicago Cubs, respectively on Tuesday afternoon.
Following Nick Mitchell, Tibbitts was the second Hoosier to be picked by Toronto in this year’s draft while Risedorph is the first selection by the Cubs since shutdown reliever Scott Effross (2015). The pair of players join four fellow teammates that were picked in the top-five rounds on day two of the draft.
Tibbitts was instrumental in IU’s success over the past three seasons which included back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances and 76 combined wins in 2023 and 2024. After missing a month due to injury, Tibbitts returned to the lineup in May and started the final 16 games at first base.
Over 168 career games played, Tibbitts hit .313 with 137 runs scored and 199 hits. He slugged 23 home runs and finished 14th all-time in program history with 154 RBIs. Before his injury, Tibbitts had started 149-consecutive games for the Hoosiers, the longest streak since head coach Jeff Mercer took over in 2019.
Risedorph has been IU’s most used bullpen arm in his first two seasons on campus, appearing 46 times and throwing 100 innings the last two years. He’s racked up 117 strikeouts while walking just 47 batters. He was a Freshman All-American selection in 2023.
The East Noble, Ind. native joins classmate Connor Foley (RHP, Jasper, Ind.) as the draft-eligible sophomores from IU taken in the 2024 MLB Draft. The Hoosiers’ other four selections were all from the junior class.
This year’s draft also featured a trio of high school Indiana signees picked by the Milwaukee Brewers. Griffin Tobias (RHP, 9th Round), Cooper Malamazian (SS, 17th Round) and Henry Brummel (RHP, 20th Round) were selected by the Brewers in this year’s proceedings. The trio of Midwest talent will have the option to sign professionally or begin their careers in Bloomington this year.
IU’s six draft picks were the most in a single season since 2021. Since head coach Jeff Mercer took over in 2019, no conference team has more selections in the draft than IU (24). It’s the third time in six years that IU has had six-or-more players picked in the same draft.
IU had the most players drafted from any Big Ten program. Nationally, Indiana was tied for the 13th most total players drafted in 2024.
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