Ryan Falla
The Dodgers have made their next big organizational move by selecting left-handed power pitcher Maddux Bruns with the 29th pick of the 2021 MLB Draft. Bruns was drafted as a high school pitcher with the Dodgers seeing him as “the best left-handed high school pitcher in the draft”. Bruns pitched at UMS-Wright Preparatory School out of Mobile, Alabama where he received multiple accolades for his pitching prowess. Standing at 6’2, the big-bodied high schooler has within his repertoire a fastball that can touch the high 90’s, which at the age of 19 you have to assume that he is going to be adding a few more ticks to his velocity over his first few seasons with the Dodgers. Although Bruns is currently committed to pitching at Mississippi State the Dodgers felt comfortable enough to draft him 29th overall.
#Dodgers notes: First-round pick Maddux Bruns has a Hall of Fame first name, a power arm, a 12-6 curveball … and a role model in the last high school LHP the Dodgers took with their first pick in the draft.https://t.co/NKNJvQkqSL
— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) July 12, 2021
Maddux Bruns is the most recent left-handed pitcher to be drafted by the Dodgers out of high school since Clayton Kershaw went to the Dodgers in 2006 with the 7th pick of that year’s draft. Bruns has received awards such as Alabama’s 2021 Mr. Baseball award as well as the Gatorade Player of the Year award. These came after a season that saw him strike out 102 hitters in 49 innings while allowing a minuscule total of six runs across the entire season.
“It was the greatest thing I’ve ever experienced.”
After being drafted by the Dodgers in the first-round, power lefty Maddux Bruns, named after Greg Maddux, says he looks up to another great – Clayton Kershaw.https://t.co/mQgEi5ppDV
— Dodger Insider (@DodgerInsider) July 12, 2021
There is a lot to like here as a Dodgers fan. He fits the organization’s mold perfectly with his power-pitching ways and high-velocity repertoire. He has all the makings of the next big Dodgers bulldog, and when you consider that his fastball can very well tick up to 100mph in tandem with a devastating 12-6 curveball you’d realize that this may have been the perfect draft pick for the Dodgers. Bruns has shades of Kershaw not just in relation to his draft position, but in terms of talent and ability to achieve success. The hopes are that he can bring a similar value to the Dodgers without putting too much pressure on the expectations of his development. Look for Bruns to make his decision on signing with the Dodgers within the coming days.
