Las Vegas natives Ty Southisene and Chris Cortez selected in 2024 MLB draft | Baseball

Chris Cortez, former Silverado star and pitcher for Texas A&M, was selected 45th overall in the second round by the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday.

Starting shortstop Ty Southisene was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the fourth round on Monday with the 120th overall pick. The Toronto Blue Jays drafted UNLV right-handed pitcher and Coronado graduate Austin Cates not long after in the seventh round with the 217th overall pick.

Cortez, a first-team All-Southern Nevada pitcher as a senior in 2021, went 10-3 with a 2.78 ERA this season at Texas A&M as a junior. The 6-foot-1 right-handed pitcher struck out 102 batters in 64⅔ innings.

Southisene, a two-time first-team All-Southern Nevada infielder, batted .495 with 24 RBIs last season. He is committed to play college baseball at Tennessee, though he must now decide whether to play for the reigning College World Series champion Volunteers or go pro.

Cates went 6-5 with a 4.08 ERA this season, his first with the Rebels. He was selected to the All-Mountain West first-team after striking out 107 batters in 90⅓ innings. The Henderson native played two seasons at the College of Southern Nevada before committing to UNLV.

The MLB draft ends Tuesday with rounds 11-20. One local player who may still hear his name is Bishop Gorman catcher Burke Mabeus. The Oregon commit was considered one of the draft’s top 250 prospects by ESPN and MLB.com.

Contact Alex Wright at [email protected]. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.