LA JOLLA, Calif.—UC San Diego baseball had two scholar-athletes selected on day two of the 2024 MLB Draft, including
Ryan Forcucci and
Matt Halbach.
Forcucci becomes the highest-drafted Triton since 1989, picked in the third round (101st overall) by the Houston Astros. Halbach was selected in the 10th round (302nd overall) by the Chicago Cubs. The pair become the first two Tritons to be drafted in UC San Diego baseball's Division I era.
"I am really happy for both Ryan and Matt. They have worked hard and developed their skills and mentality to get this opportunity," said UC San Diego baseball head coach
Eric Newman.
"Watching Ryan and Matt's development from high school, through our program over the last three years, to the draft is really something special. Our coaches, fans, and alumni will be rooting for them as they join other Tritons in the professional baseball ranks!"
Forcucci finished with a 3.67 ERA in three seasons at UC San Diego, collecting 159 strikeouts in 132.1 innings with an 8-6 record. Opponents hit .216 against the right-hander in 32 games (26 starts).
In his junior season, Forcucci recorded a 2.16 ERA in five starts, collecting 37 strikeouts in 25.0 innings with a 2-1 record. The San Marcos, Calif. native tallied a 0.80 WHIP, allowing 14 hits and nine earned runs with just six walks before being sidelined in the back half of the season. Forcucci set the UC San Diego Division I single game record with 11 strikeouts in the 2024 season opener against San Jose State (Feb. 16) to earn Big West Pitcher of the Week and recorded 10 punch-outs against Pacific (Mar. 8).
Halbach finished with a .311 career batting average in three seasons with the Tritons, recording a .504 slugging percentage and .402 on base percentage. He tallied 82 RBI and 93 runs scored with 132 hits (30 doubles, eight triples and 12 home runs).
A 2023 All-Big West First Team selection, Halbach began the 2024 season red-hot with a .408 batting average in 19 games and a 15-game hitting streak before being sidelined due to injury. The Los Gatos, Calif. native collected 29 hits, 18 RBI and 23 runs scored with nine doubles and three home runs. The third-baseman recorded a .662 slugging percentage and .511 on base percentage with eight multi-hit games and four multi-RBI performances.
Forcucci and Halbach become the first two Tritons to be selected in the MLB Draft in the program's Division I era. They join Marc Filia (2022, Cleveland Guardians) and Cameron Leonard (2021, Tampa Bay Rays), who both signed undrafted free agent contracts during the Tritons' D-I transition. The UC San Diego baseball program has had 25 scholar-athletes selected in the MLB Draft since 1974, most recently Shay Whitcomb was selected in the fifth round (160th overall) by the Houston Astros in 2020.
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of The Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.
