KANSAS CITY, Mo.— The Kansas City Royals selected eight players on the second day of the 2024 First-Year Player Draft.
With the 76th overall pick in the 3rd round, the Royals selected right-handed pitcher Drew Beam out of the University of Tennessee. Beam, 21, went 9-2 with a 4.22 ERA (48 ER in 102.1 IP) for the national champion Volunteers. Beam struck out 99 batters (22.7%) in 19 starts, while walking just 27 (6.2%). His efforts garnered national attention, as he was a Third-Team All-American by NCBWA, First-Team All-Region by ABCA and the 2024 SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Over three seasons at Tennessee, he went 26-8 with a 3.60 ERA (105 ER in 262.2 IP) and 249 strikeouts (22.7%), and just 71 walks (6.5%), posting a 1.19 WHIP. Beam also made 2 starts for the 2023 USA Collegiate National Team, striking out 7 batters in 8.0 innings, including a victory over Team Japan on July 8 (4.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R) and a win vs. Chinese Taipei on July 1 (4.0 IP, 1 R).
With the 105th overall pick in the 4th round, Kansas City selected right-handed pitcher LP (Louis-Philippe) Langevin out of the University of Louisiana-Lafayette. Langevin, 21, went 6-1 with 7 saves and a 3.73 ERA (26 ER in 62.2 IP) across 23 appearances (3 starts), striking out 106 batters (39.1 K%) while issuing just 33 walks (12.2 BB%) for the Ragin’ Cajuns, earning himself a semifinalist nod for the Dick Howser Trophy. His fastball metrics were outstanding, as he ranked 2nd in NCAA Division-I overall (45.0%) and in-zone (42.0%) whiff rate this season. A native of Quebec, Canada, LP spent his first two college seasons at Wabash Valley (Ill.) Community College and helped lead the Warriors to the finals of the 2023 Junior College World Series.
With the 138th overall pick in the 5th round, the Royals selected right-handed pitcher A.J. Causey out of the University of Tennessee, joining 3rd-rounder Drew Beam as 2024 Volunteers selected by the Royals. Causey and Beam played travel ball together throughout high school for the Vipers Baseball Academy. Causey, 21, went 13-3 for the national champions, posting a 4.43 ERA (45 ER in 91.1 IP) with 125 strikeouts (31.8%) and 22 walks (5.6%), earning Third-Team All American honors from Perfect Game, ABCA and NCBWA, as well as First-Team All-Southeast Region from ABCA. A.J. threw 3.2 innings as the bulk pitcher in Game 1 of the College World Series final vs. Texas A&M, striking out 5 batters and walking just 1. He spent 2022-23 at Jacksonville State University (Fla.), where he went 9-6 with a 4.11 ERA (57 ER in 124.2 IP) and 147 strikeouts.
With the 167th overall pick in the 6th round, the Royals selected right-handed pitcher Tanner Jones out of Texas A&M University. Jones, 21, spent last season with the Texas A&M Aggies, and in his lone season with them he struck out 47 batters (20.7 K%) in 48.1 innings pitched. He attended Jacksonville State University from 2022-23, where he was teammates with Royals 4th rounder A.J. Causey. Jones attended Thorsby High School (Ala.), where he became the first student-athlete to sign with an NCAA Division-I program in 2021.
With the 197th overall pick in the 7th round, the Royals selected right-handed pitcher Dennis Colleran Jr. out of Northeastern University (Mass.). Colleran, 21, appeared in 20 games (4 starts) for Northeastern University this season, striking out 46 batters (24.6 K%) with 18 walks (9.6%) and 1 save. Displayed premium velocity in 2024 with a fastball that averaged between 96-100 mph, and maxed out at 99.2 mph at the Draft Combine in June. He missed 2023 due to Tommy John surgery, but as a freshman in 2022, he appeared in 15 games, striking out 24 batters in 22.0 innings pitched. Colleran Jr. pitched in 9 games for Hyannis in the 2023 Cape Cod League, going 4-0 with 18 strikeouts (32.1 K%) in 13.0 innings of work. He lettered in baseball and wrestling at North Attleboro High School (Mass.), where he won League MVP as a senior in 2021.
With the 227th overall pick in the 8th round, the Royals selected right-handed pitcher Nick Conte out of Duke University (N.C.). Conte, 22, has appeared in 20 games for the Duke Blue Devils in three seasons, striking out 23 batters (26.1 K%) in 18.1 innings pitched. He pitched in 6 games (3 finished) for Ocean State in the New England Collegiate Baseball League this summer, striking out 24 batters (55.8 K%) in 11.1 innings. Conte was a four-year letter-winner at North Providence High School (R.I.), where he went 13-5 as a junior and boasted a 4.0 GPA across all four years, and he was ranked by Perfect Game as the No. 1 right-handed pitcher and the No. 1 overall player in the state of Rhode Island coming out of high school.
With the 257th overall pick in the 9th round, the Royals selected catcher Canyon Brown out of North Carolina A&T State University. Brown, 20, slashed .310/.414/.492 (61-for-197, .906 OPS) with 21 extra-base hits, 41 runs, 49 RBI and 23 walks to 28 strikeouts at North Carolina A&T this season. Defensively, he threw out 27-of-57 (47.4%) attempted base runners and finished with a .979 fielding percentage. He played in three seasons for the Aggies, slashing .290/.374/.473 (161-for-556, .847 OPS) across 151 games with 116 RBI and 59 extra-base hits. Brown was named a Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-American in 2022 after posting an .818 OPS across 52 games at North Carolina A&T. He participated in the 2024 MLB Draft Combine, and was also named to the second annual HBCU Swingman Classic roster, a showcase for Division I HBCU college baseball programs played during the All-Star break. The game was held on July 12 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.
With the 287th overall pick in the 10th round, the Royals selected left-handed pitcher Nate Ackenhausen out of Louisiana State University. Ackenhausen, 22, struck out 59 batters (31.1 K%) in 43.0 innings across 20 appearances (5 starts) for the Louisiana State University Tigers this year. In two seasons at LSU, he has gone 6-5 with 4 saves and a 4.76 ERA (39 ER in 73.2 IP), as well as 95 strikeouts (29.3 K%). Ackenhausen was named to the 2023 SEC First-Year Academic Honor Roll as a sport administration major at LSU. Prior to his time at LSU, he spent two seasons at Eastern Oklahoma State University, and posted an 8-1 record with a 1.84 ERA as a sophomore in 2022.
Video of last night’s Zoom calls, as well as all press releases and calls from the 2024 Draft, can be found here.
The Draft will conclude tomorrow with rounds 11-20, beginning at 1:00 p.m. CT, exclusively on MLB.com.