USF baseball sees three selected in MLB Draft
In the first year under head coach Mitch Hannahs, three Bulls pitchers were selected in the second day of the MLB Draft.
Bulls pitchers Corey Braun, Bryce Archie and Austin Newton were selected in the middle rounds of the draft that stretched into Monday night.
Despite being drafted, all three players will have the option to forego their draft rights and return to college athletics.
The draft signified the end of a drought for USF, which had not had a player selected since the 2022 draft — when pitchers Jack Jasiak, Brad Lord and Orion Kerkering were selected alongside infielder Carmine Lane.
In the eighth round, Braun was selected by the Athletics with the 230th pick.
Braun carved out a place for himself as the bonafide ace for USF in the 2025 season, with all but one of his 15 starts coming in Friday games.
Through Braun’s 16 total appearances, he posted 97 strikeouts – good enough for fifth in the American Athletic Conference – alongside a 3.71 ERA.
Related: USF coaches need to be more than game-day leaders
Braun initially entered the transfer portal on July 1 with a do not contact tag, allowing him to control which universities could interact with him in the portal. As he enters his redshirt senior year, Braun’s options remain open.
Two rounds later, Newton was selected by the Colorado Rockies with the 287th pick.
While both starting and relieving for the Bulls, Newton appeared in eight games in the 2025 season.
Newton did a little bit of everything on the mound for USF, posting four starts, 22.2 innings pitched and even a save.
For the Rockies, Newton was part of a clear trend for the Colorado-based team, as they selected 14 pitchers throughout the 20 rounds of the draft.
Much like Braun, he enters his senior year, opening his options with remaining college eligibility left.
After two more rounds passed, the Bulls landed their final draftee of the night.
Archie was selected in the 14th round by the Cincinnati Reds with the 414th pick.
Related: How Bryce Archie splits his time between two sports: ‘I know how to prepare for it’
Doubling as a USF football backup quarterback, Archie posted 15 appearances on the diamond throughout 2025.
While serving as both a starter and reliever, Archie maintained a 3.25 ERA alongside 36 strikeouts through 44.1 innings pitched.
Similarly to both Braun and Newton, Archie is also entering his senior year.
Alongside his football career at USF, the Red’s selection will lead Archie to make a decision in the near future.
Archie is likely to serve as the Bulls backup behind senior Byrum Brown should he return for the next season.
He served as the backup last season as well, eventually starting after Brown sustained a season ending injury in the Bulls loss to Tulane.
Archie could choose to start his MLB career now or return to USF for another season in which he could play football and baseball, allowing him to further improve his draft stock in both sports.
The MLB’s draft signing deadline is July 28, only 14 days after the draft’s conclusion, so each player will need to make their choice by then.
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