Any major league team could've had Drew Burress. The Georgia prep player was available to any one of the 30 Major League Baseball teams that deemed him worthy of consideration during the 2023 MLB Draft.
According to MLB Pipeline, Burress was just outside the Top 100 players available in last year's draft. An outfielder at Houston County High School, Burress was committed to play college ball at Georgia Tech, but like all young players, money talks. Had an organization taken a flier on Buress in the second, third, or maybe even the fourth round, perhaps he'd be in their farm system right now.
But instead, the 19-year-old is mashing balls for the Ramblin' Wreck as a freshman. On Tuesday, in front of the home fans at Russ Chandler Stadium, Burress went yard. Not just once, but four times. Even more impressive is the fact that he did so in just four swings. Georgia Tech won the game against their in-state rival, the Georgia State Panthers, by a final of 10-0.
Georgia Tech freshman Drew Burress puts on a show & proves that teams whiffed in 2023 MLB Draft
Four home runs in a single game is not something you see every day. To date, only 18 major league players have ever accomplished such a feat, with both J.D. Martinez and Scooter Gennett having been the most recent to do so back in 2017.
🎥 Last night, freshman @drew_burress08 etched his name into Georgia Tech history 😤#WreckHavoc x #StingEm pic.twitter.com/eRHow1UzaZ
— Georgia Tech Baseball (@GTBaseball) February 28, 2024
With Burress having been passed over during last year's draft, he will not become eligible for the Major League Baseball Draft until 2026. If he continues on the same path he's on right now, Burress may end up one of the top players in that year's draft class.
Burress is 15-for-34 with nine home runs through the first eight games of the season. He's slugging a ridiculous 1.382, with all but one of his base hits going for extra bases. Scouts will likely knock Burress' 5-foot-9 frame, citing that there's not much projection for such a small player, but it hasn't stopped him yet.
There's always a handful of players that should have been drafted out of high school, only to vault to the top of team's draft boards and get the call three years later. Drew Burress could be in that conversation in 2026.