Nebraska Baseball’s Caron and Sears Selected in MLB Draft

Two big time performers from the 2024 Big Ten Tournament Champion Husker baseball team were selected in the 2024 Major League Baseball Draft.

Josh Caron, C

Round 4, pick 121 by the Seattle Mariners

The first Husker off the board was no surprise. Josh Caron got better each and every year he was in the Husker program. The junior catcher was notably left off any All-Big Ten team in 2024, and after that was announced he went off as the hottest hitter in the country to finish off his Husker career. Caron earned the Big Ten Tournament Most Outstanding Player, setting a tournament record with 6 home runs and 28 total bases.

Caron finished the season batting .308, with 15 doubles, and led Nebraska with 16 home runs, 65 RBIs and a .992 OPS.

Caron becomes the highest selected Nebraska catcher since Bill McGuire was selected number 27 overall in 1985. He is the 10th Husker to be selected by the Mariners, and the 7th to be selected in the 4th round.

Brett Sears, RHP

Round 7, pick 221 by the Atlanta Braves.

In one of the biggest turnarounds of recent memory, Brett Sears went from struggling spot reliever in 2023, to turning in one of the best all time seasons in Husker history in 2024, earning Big Ten Pitcher of the Year, 1st team All-Big Ten, and 2nd team All-American by nearly every publication.

Sears finished the season with a 9-1 record, and 1 (HUGE) save that clinched the conference championship. He was 5th in division 1 with a 2.16 ERA and 4th in WHIP at 0.88. His 101 strikeouts were 9th most in Husker history and the most since 2008. He also became the first Husker player to be both an All-American and Academic All-American since Aaron Marsden in 2003.

Sears is 5th pitcher since Will Bolt took over to be drafted, following fellow Brave Spencer Schwellenbach, and Cade Povich in 2021, and Emmett Olson and Jace Kaminska from 2023. He is the 6th player to be selected by Atlanta, and the 4th to be a 7th round pick.