FORT WORTH, Texas — BYU right-handed pitcher Ben Hansen was selected by the Boston Red Sox in the 20th round of the 2024 MLB Draft at Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth on Tuesday.
Hansen becomes BYU’s 124th all-time MLB Draft selection and the first to be drafted by the Red Sox organization. Six members of the Cougar baseball program have been selected in the MLB draft over the past three seasons including Andrew Pintar, Cy Nielson, Nate Dahle and Cooper McKeehan in 2022 and Austin Deming in 2023.
Hansen started 14 games as a sophomore in 2024, leading BYU in starts, wins (5), innings pitched (72) and strikeouts (51). His 72 innings of work was also ninth best during the Big 12 regular season. He finished the 2024 campaign with a 5-7 record and a 6.63 ERA for a Cougar team that went 21-31 overall and 7-23 in its first season in the Big 12 Conference.
The Pleasanton, California, native signed with BYU after serving a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Santiago, Dominican Republic. As a freshman in 2023, Hansen appeared in 16 games with 10 starts and was third on the team in innings pitched with 55.
As a pre-business major with a 3.77 GPA, Hansen was selected Academic All-District in 2024 by College Sports Communicators and was also named Academic All-Big 12 Team First Team. As a freshman in 2023 he was named to the WCC Commissioner's Silver Honor Roll.
Hansen’s brother, Brett, is also a member of the BYU baseball team and his father, Matt, played basketball for the Cougars in 1988.