SEATTLE – Washington Baseball teammates Austin Rei and Braden Bishop have known each other since they were nine years old according to Rei, so it is appropriate that the start of the childhood friends’ professional careers were jump-started almost simultaneously on Tuesday.
Rei, a junior catcher, was the first Husky player selected in the second day of the Major League Baseball Draft, going 81st overall in the third round to the Boston Red Sox. About 17 minutes later, Bishop was selected 13 picks later by the Seattle Mariners, 94th overall in the third round.
The Husky pair was later joined in the draft by incoming catcher Francis Christy, a junior college transfer from Palomar College who was the first selection of the seventh round by the Arizona Diamondbacks, 196th overall, and high school senior pitcher Karsen Lindell of West Linn, Ore., who was selected in the ninth round, 271st overall by the Milwaukee Brewers.
Rei and Bishop were rivals in middle school and high school – Rei went to Campolindo HS in Moraga, Calif., while Bishop attended St. Francis in Mountain View – before joining forces in college. They will be on different teams in the professional ranks, finally playing in different area codes after being linked together for so long.
“It’s one thing to have a teammate that you played three years with to get drafted the same day as you, but I’ve known him since we were kids,” said Rei of his longtime friendship with Bishop.
“It’s so much fun to see us grow up and to see where we are now and exciting to see what pro ball has in store for us.”
Rei now holds the distinction of being the highest drafted catcher in UW history, topping Aaron Hathaway, a fourth-round selection, 104th overall in 2005. It also marks the highest any Husky has been selected since Nick Hagadone was picked in the first round, 55th overall as a compensation selection in 2007.
Bishop is the highest drafted UW outfielder since Chris Magruder went 72nd overall as a second round compensation pick in 1998 by the San Francisco Giants.
Rei played in 100 games, making 88 starts in his first three years at Washington. He has a career batting average of .303 with nine home runs, 54 RBI and an OPS of .894.
In 2015, Rei led the Huskies in batting average (.330), slugging percentage (.681), on base percentage (.445) and OPS (1.127). He was second on the team with seven home runs and fourth with 20 RBI, despite playing in only 25 games after suffering a UCL injury in his left thumb five games into the season.
Rei hit .333 in Pac-12 play and ranked third in Conference-only action with six home runs despite playing in only 15 of a possible 30 games. He was named Honorable Mention All-Pac-12 after the season.
In 2014, Rei was All-Pac-12 and a member of the All-Defensive team. He hit .314 in 52 games, 46 starts. He started all 30 games behind the plate in Pac-12 action and helped Washington reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time in a decade.
Rei was previously drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 37th round of the 2012 MLB Draft out of high school.
Bishop is also experiencing his second chance in the draft. He was selected in the 36th round of the 2012 Draft by the Atlanta Braves.
Like Rei, Bishop spurned the professional ranks to attend college. And similarly, the decision paid dividends with a higher draft position.
Bishop is a career .293 hitter in 149 games for the Huskies. He made 136 starts, mostly in centerfield.
As a junior in 2015 he was All-Pac-12 and an All-Pac-12 Defensive Team member after batting .295 with four homers and 25 RBI. He led the team with 16 multi-hit games and was second with seven multiple RBI games. Bishop led team in hits (57), runs (38), stolen bases (15), doubles (14), total bases (85) and walks (23), and also ranked second in RBI (25), OPS (.834) and on base pct. (.394). He is second all-time in UW history being hit by 43 pitches.
He doesn’t have to move far to start his Mariners career. The front office is a 10 minute drive from his current residence and he possibly could be sent to short season-A ball in nearby Everett.
“I was really excited,” Bishop said of his selection by the Mariners. “It is an honor to be picked at all in the MLB Draft, so I definitely don’t take that lightly. To be chosen by a team that I am familiar with and is right here in town, it is definitely an honor and I am really, really thankful for the opportunity.”
The Major League Baseball Draft continues Wednesday with rounds 11 through 40.
