Nebraska’s Brett Sears selected by Atlanta Braves in seventh round of MLB draft

The former Huskers ace right-hander went to the Atlanta Braves in the seventh round of the MLB draft and No. 221 overall in a resolution that came sooner than most – other than him – expected.

“It’s an exciting time,” Sears said. “Been working for this my whole life. I’m excited to get out there and see what they have in store for me and get back to work.”

Sears had plenty of merit to be taken that early. He earned Big Ten Pitcher of the Year honors after breaking out in the spring with a 2.16 earned-run average and 0.88 WHIP that both ended in the top five nationally. He was also a quality-start machine, including nine straight at one point. But the 24-year-old’s relative lack of youth was a counterpoint for some pro clubs – many talent evaluators still considered Sears on track to be a fringe selection or undrafted free agent.

The native of Westphalia, Iowa, watched the draft results come in while hanging around a pool in nearby Harlan with some friends. He took a call during a break after the sixth round letting him know his name was about to pop.

Slot value for Sears’ pick is $245,900 though the hurler said he’ll sign for “under slot value” as a senior with no leverage. He graduated in May with a degree in child, youth and family studies.

Atlanta had tried to sign Sears as an undrafted free agent a year ago after the pitcher dominated the Northwoods League in June and July. The franchise has added three other NU pitchers in recent cycles in Jake McSteen (undrafted in 2021), Spencer Schwellenbach (second round in 2021) and Shay Schanaman (undrafted in 2023).

“I thought it was the right fit this year,” Schanaman said. “They’re a good organization and I couldn’t be happier about it.”

Sears is the first Husker hurler with 100-plus strikeouts in a season since 2008 after compiling 101 punchouts – ninth-most in program history – in 104 innings. He was undefeated until an NCAA tournament loss to Florida and commands a four-pitch mix while usually ready to throw a ball before the batter steps into the box.

Sears began his college career at Western Illinois, continued at Iowa Central C.C. and ended at Nebraska when the lifelong Husker football fan drove to Lincoln in the winter to participate in a team prospect camp in which he turned heads with his velocity and stuff. The big finish in his fifth year came about because of the extra season of eligibility afforded by the pandemic – “it kind of saved my career,” Sears said this spring.

Not going pro last summer was a “risk,” Sears said. He credited pitching coach Rob Childress for calling strong games and himself for believing he could be more than an up-and-down reliever in major college baseball.

“I think it was being confident in my stuff and getting a chance to start – it was what I’d always done previously,” Sears said. “Getting deep in games where I feel like I get sharper was a big thing for me.”