How Draft Day Took an Unexpected Turn for New Reds Outfielder Dane Myers

When I interview a player for the first time, one of my favorite questions is what their draft day was like. Usually, it's the feel-good story or the best day of their life. You've heard the answer a million times.

However, on draft day, with Dane Myers, it didn't go quite as planned for the new Reds outfielder.

Heading into the 2027 MLB Draft, Myers had certain teams looking at drafting him to be a position player, and other teams wanted to pick him as a pitcher. While he wasn't going to be greedy, he hoped to be picked as a position player.

Myers was taken in the sixth round by the Detroit Tigers...as a pitcher.

Not knowing the full background of his story, I asked him if draft day was everything he dreamed of.

"Not quite," Myers said, laughing. "Looking back on it, it was, but in the moment, it was kind of a tough day for me. Growing up and playing ball in high school and college, and kind of pitching and hitting that whole entire time, getting drafted as a pitcher took a little bit away from me because I loved to hit and play every day."

Even though draft day didn’t unfold the way he had hoped, Myers said the opportunity to chase a big-league career ultimately outweighed his initial disappointment.

"It's basically why I took the deal and ended up signing with the Tigers. I wanted to play professional ball. Obviously, that was a dream growing up. Draft day was wild. I had a couple of teams that wanted to take me as a hitter. I had more teams that wanted to take me as a pitcher. Sitting back and just waiting to see who took me first was pretty crazy. I really didn't know going into the draft if I was going to hit or pitch."

"Obviously, looking back on it, I wish I would have stuck to the hitting route and kind of dug my feet into the ground and stood firm on that. But I think everything happens for a reason, and I grew as my time as a pitcher with Detroit and learned how to be a pro...Looking back on it, it was a great day. Obviously, my dream was kind of achieved at that point, but it was a pretty hectic draft day."

Myers went on to pitch in parts of three seasons with the Tigers organization before moving back to a position player in the 2021 season. After the 2022 season, Myers was selected by the Miami Marlins in the Minor League Rule 5 Draft.

He thrived in the minors as a hitter in 2023, forcing his way to the big leagues with Miami, where he appeared in 22 games, slashing .269/.286/.358 with four extra-base hits and nine stolen bases.

The Reds traded for Myers in late December to help shore up their outfield defense and improve against left-handed pitching.

While draft day wasn't what Myers was expecting, it was all worth it in the end to play in the big leagues.

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