2020 MLB Draft: Jared Shuster selected by Braves in first round

Wake Forest pitcher Jared Shuster was selected 25th overall in the 2020 MLB Draft. (Brian Westerholt/Four Seam Images)

So much for the pandemic negatively impacting ALL New England baseball players.

New Bedford, Mass., native Jared Shuster, a junior left-handed pitcher at Wake Forest University, received a pleasant surprise Wednesday evening when he was selected by the Atlanta Braves in the first round -- 25th overall -- of the 2020 MLB Draft. Shuster was ranked as the 77th prospect on MLB.com.

Shuster is the first New England native to earn a selection in the first round since former Boston College power hitter Chris Shaw (Lexington, Mass.) was picked by the San Francisco Giants with the 31st overall selection in the 2015 MLB Draft.

The slot value for the Braves' 25th overall selection is $2,740,300, so Shuster figures to forego his senior year at Wake Forest to sign a pro deal.