Cubs complete first night of 2024 MLB Draft

by Cubs Media Relations - Sun Jul 14 23:11:45 GMT-04:00 2024

CHICAGO, Ill. – The Chicago Cubs tonight completed the first two rounds of the 2024 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by selecting infielder Cam Smith out of Florida State University in the first round (14th overall pick) and infielder Cole Mathis out of the College of Charleston in the second round (54th overall pick).

Smith was recommended by area scout Ike Ballou and Mathis was recommended by area scout M’Lynn Dease.

Smith, 21, batted .387 (104-for-269) with 22 doubles, one triple, 16 home runs, 47 RBI, and a 1.142 OPS in 66 games for Florida State in 2024. He recorded 44 walks, compared to 48 strikeouts, contributing to a .488 on-base percentage. Smith saw a batting average increase of 129 points, from .258 as a freshman. In postseason play, Smith hit homers in back-to-back games against UCF in the regionals and went 5-for-9 in two games against UConn in the super regionals. All told in postseason play, Smith batted .314 (11-for-35) with two home runs, seven RBI and a 1.032 OPS.

As a freshman in 2023, the six-foot three-inch, 229-pound Smith hit .258 (54-for-209) with eight doubles, five triples, 12 home runs, 36 RBI and a .843 OPS in 51 games. He ranked second on the Seminoles in runs (39), hits and walks (21) and third in RBI en route to ACC All-Freshman and All-Academic Team honors. Following the season, Smith earned the 2023 Robert A. McNece Award for the Most Outstanding Prospect in the Cape Cod League, appearing in 44 games for Hyannis, batting .347 (58-for-167) with 12 doubles, four triples, six home runs and 26 RBI. In two seasons at Florida State, Smith has hit a combined .331 (158-for-478) with 30 doubles, six triples, 28 home runs, 93 RBI and a 1.014 OPS in 117 games.

A Lake Worth, Fla. native, Smith graduated from Palm Beach Central High School in Wellington, Fla. He was ranked by Perfect Game as the No. 1 shortstop in Florida and No. 53 overall prospect nationally in 2022. He was named a First Team All-American in both his junior and senior seasons.

Mathis, 20, played three seasons at the College of Charleston, batting a combined .327 (136-for-416) with 38 doubles, three triples, 24 home runs and 112 RBI in 133 games. In 2024, Mathis was named to the All-CAA First Team and the CAA All-Tournament Team, after he ranked fifth in the CAA in OPS (1.122), tied for fifth in runs (63) and sixth in slugging percentage (.650), doubles (17) and RBI (57). During the campaign, he batted .335 (67-for-200) with a .472 on-base percentage.

In 2023, the six-foot one-inch Mathis appeared in 56 games for the College of Charleston, leading the team in average (.330), doubles (20), slugging percentage (.575), walks (41), runs (48) and OPS (1.014), while posting a 3.45 ERA (23 ER/60.0 IP) in 14 games (10 starts) on the mound.

Born in Cataula, Ga., Mathis attended Harris County High School (Ga.), where he was named First Team All-State in 2019 and 2021, while being named the Region I-5A Player of the Year in 2019 and the Region II-5A Hitter of the Year in 2021.

The 2024 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft continues tomorrow with rounds 3-10, before concluding on Tuesday with rounds 11-20.