A's sign Romeo, Magdic

Mississauga Tigers right-hander Josiah Romeo (Caledon, Ont.) has signed with the Oakland A’s after being selected by them in the sixth round of this year’s MLB draft. Photo: Mississauga Tigers

July 25, 2024

Official Oakland A’s News Release

OAKLAND, Calif. — The Oakland A’s agreed to terms with 20 of their 21 selections from the 2024 First-Year Player Draft, including each of their first 20 picks, the club announced on Thursday.

The selections are first baseman Nick Kurtz (1st round, Wake Forest), infielder Tommy White (2nd round, LSU), left-handed pitcher Gage Jump (Competitive Balance Round-B, LSU), shortstop Josh Kuroda-Grauer (3rd round, Rutgers), outfielder Rodney Green (4th round, UC Berkeley), right-handed pitcher Sam Stuhr (5th round, University of Portland), right-handed pitcher Josiah Romeo (6th round, Mayfield Secondary School), catcher Dylan Fien (7th round, Great Oak High School), infielder Davis Diaz (8th round, Vanderbilt), third baseman Jared Sprague-Lott (9th round, Arkansas), outfielder Cameron Leary (10th round, Boston College), right-handed pitcher Kyle Robinson (11th round, Texas Tech), shortstop Ali Camarillo (12th round, Texas A&M), left-handed pitcher Riley Huge (13th round, Winthrop), left-handed pitcher Ryan Magdic (14th round, Missouri), right-handed pitcher Blake Hammond (15th round, Santa Clara), right-handed pitcher Connor Spencer (16th round, Mississippi), right-handed pitcher Aidan Layton (17th round, Seton Hill), left-handed pitcher Tucker Novotny (18th round, Minnesota), and shortstop Gunner Gouldsmith (19th round, Sacramento State).

The A’s also signed non-drafted outfielder CJ Pittaro (Penn State), catcher Tommy Takayoshi (Niagara University), infielder Ben Newton (Fresno State), and outfielder Cesar Franco (Western Illinois).

Kurtz hit .306 with 22 home runs, 11 doubles, and 57 RBI for the Demon Deacons this season while also earning First Team All-ACC honors. He led the country with 78 walks and just 42 strikeouts to go along with a .531 on-base percentage, .763 slugging percentage, and a 1.294 OPS. As a sophomore, he finished second in the ACC in home runs (24), walks (63), runs scored (76) and slugging percentage (.784). The left-handed hitter earned All-ACC First Team honors in 2023 and Third Team honors in 2022.

White, 21, hit .330 with 12 doubles, 24 home runs, and 70 RBI to go along with a 1.039 OPS in 66 games played for Louisiana State University this season. Across three collegiate seasons (North Carolina State in 2022 and LSU in 2023-24), White hit .355 with a 1.123 OPS with 48 doubles, 75 home runs, and 249 RBI.

Jump, 21, went 6-2 with a 3.47 ERA with 101 strikeouts and 22 walks across 17 games (15 starts) for Louisiana State University. He missed the entire 2023 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. The left-hander returned in 2024 and earned SEC All-Tournament Team honors.

Kuroda-Grauer, 21, was named the 2024 Big Ten Player of the Year after hitting .428 with 19 doubles, 45 RBI, 24 stolen bases, and 54 runs scored in 53 games for the Scarlet Knights. Across three collegiate seasons, he hit .343 with 42 doubles, 16 home runs, 70 walks, 77 strikeouts, and a .920 OPS in 162 games.

Green, 21, hit .267 with 14 doubles, 14 home runs, 15 stolen bases, and 56 runs scored in 55 games this season for the Golden Bears. The Richmond, Calif., native earned All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention honors and was named to the Pac-12 All-Tournament Team.

Stuhr, 21, went 3-2 with a 4.61 ERA across 16 starts with 100 strikeouts and 45 walks in 80.0 innings pitched for University of Portland. The 6’1” right-hander struck out a career-high 13 batters to go along with 7.0 scoreless innings on April 7 against the University of the Pacific.

Romeo (Caledon, Ont.), 18, posted a 2.51 ERA with 16 strikeouts, 12 hits allowed, four earned runs, and just one walk across four appearances (three starts) for the Trenton Thunder of the MLB Draft League. Romeo was a member of the Baseball Canada Junior National Team and the Mississauga Tigers.

Fien, 18, hit .433 with 15 doubles, two triples, two home runs, and 21 runs scored in 27 games for Great Oak High School in Temecula, Calif. He is ranked the No. 2 catcher in California by Perfect Game.

Diaz, 21, hit .248 with 10 doubles, seven home runs, 39 RBI, and 30 walks in 61 games played for the Commodores this season. The Acalanes High School graduate finished his collegiate career with 158 hits, 140 runs scored, 116 RBI, and 105 walks across 182 games played for Vanderbilt.

Sprague-Lott, 22, earned SEC All-Defensive Team honors in his senior season. Offensively, he hit .290 with a .425 on-base percentage, seven doubles, nine home runs, 36 walks, and 37 strikeouts this season for the Razorbacks. He spent the first three years of his collegiate career at Richmond before transferring to Arkansas.

Leary, 22, hit .272 with a .441 on-base percentage, 15 home runs, 48 RBI, and 23 stolen bases this season for Boston College. Across four seasons for the Eagles, Leary tallied 27 doubles, 43 home runs, 129 RBI, and a .913 OPS in 181 games played.

Robinson, 20, struck out 79 batters in 76.0 innings pitched this season with a 5.09 ERA in 15 outings, all starts. He began his collegiate career in the bullpen before transitioning to starting in 2022. In his collegiate career, he is 6-8 with a 5.14 ERA, 133 strikeouts, and 62 walks in 133.0 innings of work.

Camarillo, 21, hit .288 with a .816 OPS, 59 strikeouts, and 34 walks in 68 games including seven home runs and nine stolen bases. In his collegiate career, he hit .312 with a .856 OPS, 15 home runs, 98 strikeouts, and 54 walks in 145 games played spanning three seasons.

Huge, 22, recorded 111 strikeouts and walked 29 batters in just 66.2 innings of work this season, recording a 5.27 ERA in 13 games pitched, all starts. For his collegiate career, he is 6-8 with a 5.72 ERA, 149 strikeouts, and 50 walks in 100.2 innings of work.

Magdic (Beamsville, Ont.), 24, began his career as a first baseman before transitioning to the mound this season with Missouri. As a pitcher, he finished with 37 strikeouts and 11 walks in 35.0 innings pitched with a 4.63 ERA in 14 outings, four of which were starts.

Hammond, 21, went 3-4 with a 3.76 ERA, 83 strikeouts, and 28 walks in 69.1 innings pitched this season spanning 16 appearances, five of which were starts. For his collegiate career, he is 9-7 with a 4.45 ERA, 180 strikeouts, and 73 walks in 149.2 innings pitched across 56 appearances, including eight starts.

Spencer, 23, transferred to Ole Miss from Southeastern Louisiana and finished the year with 28 strikeouts and just 10 walks and a 6.16 ERA in 19.0 innings pitched across 18 outings, all out of the bullpen.

Layton, 22, went 7-2 with a 3.15 ERA, 90 strikeouts, and just 20 walks in 88.2 innings pitched across 15 starts this season. For his collegiate career, he is 17-6 with a 4.17 ERA, 221 strikeouts, 61 walks, and just nine home runs allowed in 218.0 innings pitched across 51 appearances, 37 of which were starts.

Novotny, 21, recorded 62 strikeouts and 26 walks in 52.0 innings pitched this season with a 8.13 ERA in 15 appearances, 14 of which were starts. For his collegiate career, he is 7-11 with a 5.56 ERA, 156 strikeouts, 71 walks, and 18 home runs allowed in 35 outings, including 29 starts.

Gouldsmith, 22, hit .318 with a .813 OPS in 57 games this season, including 27 walks and just 31 strikeouts. The Washington State transfer finishes his collegiate career hitting .311 with a .780 OPS, seven home runs, 75 strikeouts, and 60 walks in 152 games played.

The A’s selected a total of 21 players in the draft, including 18 college players and three high schoolers. The breakdown features 11 pitchers, two outfielders, six infielders, and two catchers.