ARLINGTON, TEXAS — Redshirt junior right-handed pitcher
Drake Frize was selected in the 17th round of the 2024 MLB Draft (524th overall pick) by the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday afternoon, rounding out a week that saw five Toreros hear their names called by big league teams.
He was taken alongside
Josh Randall (Detroit Tigers, pick No. 85),
Jakob Christian (San Francisco Giants, pick No. 149),
Ariel Armas (Chicago Cubs, pick No. 153), and
Jack Costello (San Diego Padres, pick No. 300) to comprise USD's largest draft class since 2019, when five USD players were also selected.
Frize dazzled out of the bullpen for San Diego in 2024, posting a 3-1 record and a 2.38 ERA across 18 appearances and 22.2 innings pitched while striking out 41, walking only nine, holding opposing batters to a minuscule .168 batting average, and notching a pair of saves.
2024 marks the second consecutive season in which a USD player has been selected by Arizona after
Kevin Sim was drafted by the club in the fifth round (pick No. 148) last year. Frize joins Sim and Zach Walters (2010, pick No. 271) as just the third Torero to be drafted by the Diamondbacks.
At least one Torero has been selected in each of the last 35 MLB Drafts. Frize is the 153rd player in USD history to either have his name called in the MLB Draft or sign with a Major League team, a span that dates back to 1964.
