For the eighth straight year, a player from North Carolina high schools was selected in the first round of the Major League Baseball Draft — this time it was Salisbury’s own Vance Honeycutt, who finished his junior season at UNC.

But the North Carolina products don’t stop with Honeycutt, and that’s where this story comes in.

We’ll be listing former N.C. high school players, no matter where they went to college, as they are taken over the draft’s 20 rounds. (If we’ve missed anyone, please let us know!)

A quick history on N.C.’s most recent first-round streak of good fortune before we begin:

• 2024 — Vance Honeycutt, Salisbury (UNC)
• 2023 — Walker Jenkins, South Brunswick
• 2022 — Xavier Isaac, East Forsyth
• 2021 — Kahlil Watson, Wake Forest; Gavin Williams, Cape Fear (East Carolina)
• 2020 — Patrick Bailey, Wesleyan Christian (N.C. State)
• 2019 — Will Wilson, Kings Mountain (N.C. State); Greg Jones, Cary (UNC-Wilmington); Logan Davidson, Providence (Clemson); Blake Walston, New Hanover
• 2018 — Jordyn Adams, Green Hope
• 2017 — Mackenzie Gore, Whiteville; Austin Beck, North Davidson

Vance Honeycutt, OF, Salisbury (UNC)

1st round, 22nd overall — Baltimore Orioles

If you missed our standalone story on Honeycutt being drafted, make sure to check it out here. Here’s a little more about Honeycutt that you don’t want to miss:

• Want to know just how good he was as Salisbury’s option QB? Watch him torch the defense in the 2020* 2AA football title (*-played in spring 2021). One of his teammates was Gatorade POTY Jalon Walker, now playing football for Georgia.
• Check out the other names he made as part of our 2021 baseball all-state team (our inaugural one!).
• It’s in our initial story but also worth putting here: the guy hit 65 homers in college! If he wasn’t pitched around so much as a senior, and had gotten a junior year, maybe we could’ve seen that power more in high school.
• The last player drafted from Salisbury was Stephen Brier. He was drafted once out of high school in the 23rd round by the Reds, then played at Clemson and was also a first rounder — taken 20th overall by the Twins.

Jacob Cozart, C, Wesleyan Christian (N.C. State)

2nd round, 48th overall — Cleveland Guardians

• Cozart is the second catcher from Wesleyan Christian to be drafted in just the last four years. That Patrick Bailey guy turned out all right.
• He started 42 games as a freshman for the Wolfpack, made Second Team All-ACC as a sophomore, then racked up the honors as a senior: making First Team All-ACC and four different All-American teams as a second or third teamer.
• He hit 19 homers as a senior with 54 RBIs and 60 runs. Defensively, he stood out also as a senior: throwing out 14 runners, putting him first in the ACC among all catchers.
• In high school, he played his 8th grade year with the Forsyth Home Educators team, batting .404 with 23 hits.
• His next four years at Wesleyan Christian saw him bat .327 with 50 hits, 40 RBIs, six doubles, and eight home runs (remember, his junior year was limited to four games due to the pandemic starting). He made just three errors in his four seasons with the Trojans, winning one NCISAA state championship and finishing runner-up in two others. Was a HSOT Honorable Mention all-state selection his senior year.

Josh Hartle, P, Reagan (Wake Forest)

3rd round, 83rd overall — Pittsburgh Pirates

• The lefty was rumored to be a MLB pick coming out of high school but took his name out just before the draft despite being ranked as the 34th best prospect by BaseballAmerica.
• In his three years at Wake Forest, he struck out 275 batters in 246.2 innings and posted a 4.41 ERA, holding batters to a .266 average.
• As a junior at Wake Forest, he posted a 5.30 ERA and was 7-6 on the mound, striking out 54 batters in 69.2 IP.
• He helped Wake Forest to the College World Series as a sophomore, earning three different All-American honors and posting a 2.81 ERA.
• He was a big reason why Reagan made it all the way to the 2021 4A championship, finishing runner-up. His senior year, he had a 0.52 ERA, a 9-0 record on the mound, 88 Ks in 53.2 IP, and an opposing batting average of .084. Was named Gatorade POTY.
• He was an inaugural HSOT first-team all-state selection in 2021, with names like Walker Jenkins, Vance Honeycutt, and Khalil Watson.
• According to baseball-reference.com, Hartle is the first player from Reagan to be drafted.

Cobb Hightower, SS, East Rowan

3rd round, 88th overall — San Diego Padres

• According to the best numbers we could find, Hightower’s 156 runs make him the all-time leader in NC.
• His 163 career hits would place him third all-time in state history.
• Third player to ever be drafted out of high school from East Rowan (read more about who it was here) and second from Rowan County in the last three rounds (Honeycutt being the other).
• Soon-to-be three-time HSOT first-team all-state (the official team releases on Friday). He made it as a sophomore and a junior.

Daniel Eagen, P, Fuquay-Varina (Presbyterian)

3rd round, 102nd overall — Arizona Diamondbacks

• Is the highest pick ever from Presbyterian, where he broke several school records.
• After an injury-plagued sophomore year, he led the Blue Hose with a 2.67 ERA that was 11th in the nation. He had a school-record 122 strikeouts (top 15 in the nation) and held batters to .176 average.
• He was named Big South Conference Pitcher of the Year and made three All-American teams.
• Helped lead the Bengals to the 2021 4A state championship as a senior in high school (against Hartle’s Reagan team).
• A member of the inaugural HSOT all-state team in 2021, making the first team. His 0.19 ERA was top-five in the state. He went 4-0 with four saves, 49 Ks in 36 IP, allowing just .105 in opposing batting average.

Payton Green, SS, Green Hope/Pro5 (Georgia Tech)

6th round, 184th overall — Miami Marlins

• Started his college career at N.C. State, where he started 54 games as a sophomore, then transferred to Georgia Tech.
• He hit .308 in 55 starts for the Yellow Jackets as a junior, with 51 runs, 62 hits, 14 doubles, and 116 total bases.
• Green had two standout seasons at Green Hope. His junior year was cut off after two games as the pandemic struck, and he played his senior year with Pro5 — a non-scholastic program.
• He was selected in the 15th round out of high school by the Red Sox.
• He hit .355 as a sophomore for the Falcons with 27 hits, 29 stolen bases, 30 runs, and seven doubles, placing him onto various all-area and all-state teams.

D.J. Layton, SS, Charlotte Christian

6th round, 189th overall — Baltimore Orioles

• Second high schooler from North Carolina taken this year.
• Had a breakout senior season which will earn him HSOT all-state honors later this week.

Garrett Horn, P, Glenn (Liberty)

6th round, 195th overall — Texas Rangers

• In his junior year, Horn had a 4.05 ERA with just four starts due to injury. He struck out 29 batters in 19 innings.
• The lefty had a 4.09 ERA as a sophomore and a 1.93 ERA as a freshman, the latter of which earned him spots on two All-American freshman teams.
• Horn was an inaugural HSOT second team all-state selection, posting a 1.25 ERA with 81 strikeouts in 39.1 innings and allowing opposing batters just a .143 batting average (he had a 1-5 record despite these eye-popping numbers… such is baseball).
• For his high school career, Horn struck out 174 batters in 97 innings and had a 2.74 ERA.

Luke Craig, P, Southern Lee (UNC-Wilmington)

7th round, 224th overall — Arizona Diamondbacks

• This past season, as a redshirt junior, was a big one for Craig as a reliever. He posted a 2.13 ERA (down from 7.65 and 7.50) with 76 strikeouts in 55 innings and allowing just a .172 average.
• In high school, he struck out 101 batters in 94.1 innings pitched for his career.
• His senior year was 2020, which got cut short with the pandemic. He pitched just six innings in two contests and didn’t allow an earned run.
• Made the HSOT All-Senior team in 2020 (which honored the best of the senior class that lost its senior season).
• Played his freshman year at Harnett Central (where he was a teammate of Paul Gervase), making one appearance.

Jacob Jenkins-Cowart, OF, Southeast Guilford (East Carolina)

8th round, 244th overall — Miami Marlins

• Was a First Team All-AAC pick as a junior and a sophomore for East Carolina. Also made D1Baseball’s Freshman All-America his first season.
• He started all 63 games as a junior, playing right field. He hit .340 with 61 runs, 19 doubles, 13 homers, and 79 RBIs.
• Was an inaugural HSOT second team all-state selection in 2021, batting .433 with 17 hits, 19 RBIs, and five homers in the shortened season.

Ryan McCrystal, C, Fuquay-Varina (East Carolina)

9th round, 269th overall — Cincinnati Reds

• Started 51 games as a junior for East Carolina, 35 at DH. In 16 games as a catcher, he committed just one error.
• He batted .346 for ECU with 10 doubles, seven homers, 39 RBIs, and 26 runs.
• Led the Bengals to the 4A state championship his senior year (over Hartle’s Reagan Raiders).
• Was a 2021 first-team all-state selection, the inaugural HSOT all-state baseball team, after hitting .508 with 30 hits, 22 RBIs, and four homers.
• Had 52 hits, 36 RBIs, and 30 runs his high school career, batting .406 (junior year limited to three games due to pandemic). One of his high school teammates, Daniel Eagan, was taken in the third round this year (see above).

R.J. Sales, P, Pinecrest (UNC-Wilmington)

10th round, 296th overall — Detroit Tigers

• Righty red-shirted his sophomore year at UNCW and came back this year and earned first team All-CAA honors with a team-leading 3.41 ERA and 11-3 record in 16 starts. He struck out 93 batters in 95 innings and held opponents to a .206 batting average.
• Third-team HSOT all-state in 2021, the inaugural HSOT all-state baseball team. Hit .400 from the plate with 20 hits and posted a 2.06 ERA with a 7-0 record and 69 strikeouts with 37.1 innings.

Joe Delossantos, OF, Granville Central (William & Mary)

10th round, 301st overall — New York Yankees

• Finished his fifth season with the Tribe, starting almost every game over his last three years.
• Was second on the team with a .330 batting average this past season and a 1.015 OPS thanks to 73 hits, 67 RBIs, 38 walks, 14 homers, and 14 doubles. Added 17 stolen bases.
• The first player drafted from Granville Central. Led the Panthers with .509 average his senior year (2019) with 27 hits and 22 RBIs. Also one of the state leaders with 24 stolen bases.
• Ended his high school career with a .494 average, 78 hits, 64 RBIs, 26 doubles, eight homers, 98 runs, and 51 stolen bases.

Merrit Beeker, P, North Davidson (Ball State)

11th round, 320nd overall — Washington Nationals

• Played his junior year at Ball State after transferring from East Carolina. Was named the MAC Pitcher of the Year.
• He went 9-3 for the Cardinals with a 4.11 ERA and 128 strikeouts in 81 innings.
• At ECU he pitched just 13.1 innings as a sophomore and just five as a freshman.
• Was named HSOT first team all-state in the inaugural year as a senior at North Davidson. That year, he had a 1.65 ERA, was 6-1 on the mound with 73 strikeouts in 34 IP and held batters to a .095 average.
• Finished his high school career with 21 wins and 275 strikeouts despite pitching just two games of his junior season due to the pandemic.

Dalton Pence, P, Cherryville (UNC)

11th round, 345th overall — Texas Rangers

• Stood out as a redshirt sophomore this past season, making four second-team All-American teams with a 2.45 ERA and eight saves out of the bullpen. Was named Third Team All-ACC and helped the Tar Heels to the College World Series.
• Redshirted his freshman year at UNC but had a 3.33 ERA the following spring.
• Was named Honorable Mention all-state by HSOT in 2021 after posting a 1.50 ERA with a 4-0 record, striking out 56 in 23.1 IP. He held batters to a .139 average.

Brandon Butterworth, SS, Sun Valley (N.C. State)

12th round, 360th overall — San Diego Padres

• Helped the Wolfpack to the College World Series, starting all 61 games. Batted .250 with 56 hits and 46 runs scored and flashed his glove by helping turn 26 double plays.
• Began his college career at Western Carolina,where he had seven triples as a sophomore leadoff hitter.
• Was named Honorable Mention all-state by HSOT in 2021 after hitting .420 with 11 RBIs and scoring 17 runs (the season was short coming out of the pandemic).

A.J. Wilson, P, East Surry (Charlotte)

12th round, 372nd overall — Philadelphia Phillies

• As a grad student this past year with the 49ers, he posted a 4.85 ERA with 27 appearances out of the bullpen, striking out 86 batters in 59.1 innings.
• He played his last three years in Charlotte, but his previous ERA numbers were 11.25 and 8.25.
• Began his college career at East Carolina, playing just two contests in 2020 and 21 in 2021.
• At East Surry, he was a two-time conference player of the year and posted a 1.20 ERA as a senior in 2019.

Sam Kulasingam, 3B, Holly Springs (Air Force)

13th round, 377th overall — Kansas City

• Hit .323 this year as a senior and started every game from his sophomore season on. Had a stellar career, batting .377 with 162 RBIs, 305 hits, and 26 homers.
• Was a two-time Mountain West Conference Player of the Year.
• As a junior, he was selected in the 17th round by the Blue Jays. Hit .426 and had 100 hits.
• Made the first-and-last-of-its-kind HSOT All-Senior team in 2020, which listed the best seniors whose years were cut short due to the pandemic. His career numbers were a .376 average, 64 hits, 34 RBIs, 10 doubles, 3 HRs, 58 runs, and 17 stolen bases.

Dillon Lewis, OF, Ardrey Kell (Queens)

13th round, 391st overall — New York Yankees

• Hit .371 as a junior for the Royals, hitting 11 doubles, eight homers, and driving in 36 runs on 49 hits. He was First Team All-Atlantic Sun.
• Started 33 games as a freshman and 23 as a sophomore, batting .350 and .233, respectively.
• As a senior in 2021, he batted .308 with eight RBIs, three homers and nine runs scored.

Austin St. Laurent, 3B, Western Alamance (Appalachian State)

14th round, 423nd overall — Seattle Mariners

• Started all 55 games as a junior this past season, playing some at third and some at shortstop. He had 90 hits, 78 runs scored, and batted .366 en route to Frist Team All-Sun Belt honors.
• Was named Sun Belt Freshman of the Year in his first season at Appalachian State in 2022, batting .305 with 60 hits.
• Redshirted his freshman year at East Carolina in 2021 but transferred the next year and never played for the Pirates.
• Made the first-and-last-of-its-kind HSOT All-Senior team in 2020, which listed the best seniors whose years were cut short due to the pandemic. His career numbers were a .368 batting average, 67 hits, 47 RBIs, 12 doubles, 5 homers, and 24 stolen bases.

Jordan Little, P, Hickory Grove Christian (Virginia Tech)

15th round, 449th overall — Cincinnati Reds

• Pitched 21 games for Virginia Tech as a junior with 6.66 ERA, striking out 34 batters in 25.2 innings.
• Made just seven appearances at East Carolina in his freshman and sophomore seasons. Gave up eight earned runs in 2.2 innings.
• Made the inaugural HSOT all-state first-team in 2021 after posting good numbers at the plate (.299, 20 hits, 26 RBIs, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 8 HRs, 28 runs, 11 SBs) and great numbers on the mound (0.98 ERA, 9-1, 111 Ks in 57 IP, .136 OBA).

Jonathan Todd, P, Rockingham County (Western Carolina)

15th round, 457th overall — Toronto Blue Jays

• Came out of the bullpen as a senior, posting a 4.00 ERA in 36 innings. He struck out 49 batters and gave up just 13 walks.
• As a junior, he had a 9.25 ERA in 40.2 innings of work, but only 11.2 of them were in relief.
• Played his first two years at Rockingham Community College, posting 96 strikeouts in 52 innings as a sophomore and 105 strikeouts as a freshman.
• As a senior in 2019 at Rockingham County, he posted a 2.45 ERA with 62 strikeouts in 45.2 innings. In his career, he struck out 115 batters in 107 innings.

Will Gervase, P, Harnett Central (Wake Forest)

16th round, 472nd overall — Los Angeles Angels

• The younger brother of Paul Gervase (MLB draft pick) and one-time teammate of Luke Craig (see above) is a 6-foot-9 prospect who only pitched 3.1 innings this year for Wake Forest with a 14.54 ERA.
• Started his college career at Pitt Community College, making five appearances in 2022 with 22 strikeouts in 14.2 innings.
• Not credited with too many innings of work at Harnett Central, making just seven appearances with his senior year cut short by the pandemic.

Aidan Haugh, P, East Wake (UNC)

16th round, 488th overall — Minnesota Twins

• Came to UNC as a junior this past season and made eight starts with a 4-3 record and a 4.83 ERA in 54 innings. Struck out 61 batters and helped the Tar Heels to the College World Series.
• Started his college career at Fayetteville Tech, pitching 110.1 innings across two seasons. Averaged 12.8 strikeouts per nine innings as a sophomore and 15.5 as a freshman.
• Credited with 17 appearances at East Wake, where he graduated from in 2021.

Jacob Shafer, P, Southwest Guilford (N.C. State)

17th round, 521st — Atlanta Braves

Gus Hughes, P, Grimsley (High Point)

18th round, 541st — New York Yankees

• Pitched his last two years at High Point, posting a 3.77 ERA this year with 111 strikeouts in 102.2 innings and holding batters to .209 average. Named Big South First Team All-Conference.
• Played at Gaston College, a junior college, as a sophomore and at Charlotte as a freshman.
• Pitched 118.2 innings in his career at Grimsley, striking out 189 and holding batters to a .183 average. His career ERA was 3.72 and he was named to the HSOT All-Senior team in 2020 after his and other seniors’ seasons were cut short in the pandemic.

Logan Whitaker, P, Ledford (N.C. State)

19th round, 578th overall — Minnesota Twins

• Was a graduate student at N.C. State this past season, setting a College World Series record for strikeouts by a relief pitcher in a loss to Florida.
• Was hurt as a freshman in 2019, had the season cut short as a freshman in 2020, worked his way into the starting rotation in 2022 and posted a 4.73 ERA, followed by 4.29 ERA in 2023 and 5.49 in 2024.
• Was voted by coaches as the 2A player of the year as a senior in 2018, helping the Panthers to a runner-up finish in the state championship.

Braylon Whitaker, OF, Cox Mill

19th round, 579th overall — Baltimore Orioles

Source: highschoolot.com