Cusick Selected in First Round by Braves
7/11/2021 10:22:00 PM | Baseball
The Sudbury, Mass. native is the eighth first round pick in Wake Forest history.
DENVER, COLO. -- Ryan Cusick was selected by the Atlanta Braves with the No. 24th pick in the first round of the 2021 MLB Draft on Sunday night.
Cusick is the eighth Demon Deacon to be selected in the first round, and the seventh Deac drafted by the Braves, the second most by a major league organization.
Additionally, this marks the first time in program history a Demon Deacon was drafted in the first round in back-to-back years, as Cusick will join 2020 first round pick and former teammate Jared Shuster in Atlanta.
Former Deac, Connor Johnstone, was also drafted by the Braves (21st round) is currently a pitcher with the team's triple-A affiliate, the Gwinnett Stripers.
The Demon Deacons have heard their names called regularly in the last few years as this is the third time in the last six drafts a Deac has been drafted in the first round (Cusick - 2021, Jared Shuster - 2020 and Will Craig - 2016).
What They Are Saying
Head coach Tom Walter - "Ryan has been the ultimate workhorse for the Deacs. A weekend starter most of his career, Ryan gave us more quality starts the past three years than anyone on our staff. His work ethic and dedication to his craft are unparalleled. His ascent to the major leagues won't take long."
Ryan Cusick-
On being able to enjoy the draft with his family… "It's awesome. God blessed me with an amazing support system. It's an amazing feeling."
On what this moment means to him… "It's great. A lot of hard work. It's the culmination of seven years of hard work and it's just getting started."
On how he has developed at Wake Forest… "It's been a long way, really taking no second for granted over the past three years. Wake Forest was great to me, the coaches there and my teammates and developed into who I am today."
Dana Brown, Scouting Director, Atlanta Braves- "Cusick is a big power arm, right-handed pitcher with a really good curveball. His [fastball] velocity has been as high as 101. He made some adjustments to his arm action to get in the zone a little more. He's had some walks in the past and we feel like he's trending in the right direction. So we were excited to get him here. Anytime you can get a guy like this at 24 in the country that can touch 101, you know, it's exciting. (He's a) big physical competitor with really good makeup."
Pedro Martinez, Hall of Fame pitcher - "Great body. Has a power fastball, up in the high 90s and also a real good breaking ball. I like his attitude he presents when he's on the mound. He's going to come after you. I like his presence, his makeup. I really like this young man."
Jim Callis, Senior Writer, MLB Pipeline - "He might be the hardest throwing starters in college baseball, up to 102 miles per hour. The big difference for him this year was he came up with a much better breaking ball. He didn't show much feel for spin in the past, now he'll flash a plus-curveball. He does have an aptitude for a changeup. You do see a three-pitch mix there. He has thrown a slider at times too. The key for him to be a starter in the long term is throwing strikes and being more efficient on a consistent basis."
Dan O'Dowd, Former General Manager, Colorado Rockies - "He reminds me of Jason Schimdt. Similar body type. Straight down hill. Arm works very similar. A little bit more of a leg swing."
Ben Badler, Baseball America - "Cusick's father played college football in Maine, and Cusick himself wouldn't look out of place on the gridiron with a massive 6-foot-6, 235-pound frame. He has the power stuff to back it up and has been a hard thrower since his high school days, when he sat in the 92-94 mph range and touched 97. After three years at Wake Forest, Cusick now has one of the best fastballs in the country, a pitch that sits around 95 mph and has been up into the 100-102 mph range with solid life. Cusick will also flash a plus breaking ball that averages around 80 mph and has slurvey shape that looks more like a slider at times and more like a downer curve at others."
Social Media Posts
Welcome to Braves Country, @RyanCusick33!#ForTheA pic.twitter.com/ufCuRaaerv
— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) July 12, 2021
Wake Forest ➞ @Braves
— Wake Forest Baseball (@WakeBaseball) July 12, 2021
Let's go, @RyanCusick33! #MLBDraft | #ProDeacs 🎩 pic.twitter.com/gcMOBC3LIE
With the 24th overall pick, the @Braves select @WakeBaseball right-hander Ryan Cusick, No. 26 on the Top 250 Draft Prospects list.
— MLB Draft (@MLBDraft) July 12, 2021
Watch live: https://t.co/0xWeUlzxTb pic.twitter.com/fzy2zQXOsX
🗣️ Ultimate workhorse. Unparalleled work ethic & dedication. @RyanCusick33 | #ProDeacs 🎩 pic.twitter.com/1Rh2gPHQiw
— Wake Forest Baseball (@WakeBaseball) July 12, 2021
The 6'6" righty @RyanCusick33 can BRING IT 🔥
— ACC Baseball (@ACCBaseball) July 12, 2021
▪️ Second Team All-ACC
▪️ 13.89 Ks per 9 innings (1st in ACC, 9th in NCAA)
▪️ 108 Ks in 2021 (4th in ACC)
▪️ 10+ Ks six times in 2021@WakeBaseball | @Braves
Bringing the ⛽️ to the ATL. @RyanCusick33 | #ProDeacs 🎩 pic.twitter.com/YHbOsG61RX
— Wake Forest Baseball (@WakeBaseball) July 12, 2021
Career Overview
Over the course of his career, Cuisck struck out 206 batters in 158 innings while earning 10 victories in 35 appearances (28 starts). Additionally, he holds the third-highest strikeout per nine innings mark (11.73) in program history.
The Sudbury, Mass. native posted his best season in The Old Gold and Black in 2021, tallying a career-high 108 K's, the eighth-highest mark in a single campaign in program history, and the highest strikeout per-nine innings average in the ACC (13.89). Additionally, Cusick struck out double-digit batters in six of his 10 starts, while giving up zero earned runs in a trio of appearances.
Cusick was named the ACC Pitcher of the Week after leading Wake Forest to an empathic 11-0 victory at Duke on April 16, fanning 11 Blue Devils while only allowing four hits. The Sudbury, Mass. native didn't allow more than one hit in any inning and threw a pair of strikeouts in four separate frames.
In starts against Notre Dame (Feb. 27) and Florida State (March 26), he registered a season-high 12 punchouts. In the Friday night contest with the Seminoles in Tallahassee, Cusick conceded a season-low two hits while fanning seven of the first 12 batters faced.
Cusick closed out his collegiate career with his third victory of the season as he tossed a season-long 7.1 innings in the opener of Wake Forest's dominating series sweep of Pitt to end the 2021 season.
Day two of the MLB Draft, set to start at 1:00 p.m., features rounds 2-10, including the Competitive Balance B picks and can be streamed at MLB.com. Stay tuned to the Wake Forest Baseball social media platforms and GoDeacs.com for updates throughout Monday and Tuesday's selections.
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