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Being a catcher in baseball is one of the most grueling positions on the diamond. For Oklahoma catcher Easton Carmichael he took this challenge and ran with it to become one of the top backstops in this year’s MLB Draft. 

Easton was born to Julie and Darby Carmichael on November 3, 2003. The native of Prosper, Texas, was first introduced to the game by his father, who was also an Oklahoma Baseball alumnus, at a young age. 

Carmichael first started to see his pro potential in high school, especially after participating in the USA PDP game his senior year of high school, proving he can play with the best of the best. With his performance in the game along with his high school success, he started to hear some draft noise, but ultimately elected to join his father’s alma mater, The University of Oklahoma, joining his older brother Braden. Carmichael stated that being a Sooner was all he knew with his mother being a cheerleader at the school along with his father and brother being in the baseball program. 

“It was a dream come true”, Carmichael exclaimed. 

Easton saw continued success at the collegiate level, making 39 starts as a true freshman behind the plate, slashing a .306 average with 48 RBIs, 28 runs, eight doubles, four triples, and six home runs along with registering a .482 slugging percentage and a .346 OBP. He was named to the Big-12 All-Freshman Team along with registering his favorite collegiate memory, catching his brother Braden’s complete game shutout against Oklahoma State. 

Carmichael then saw an uptick in starts behind the plate, going from 39 to 60 while hitting .366 with seven home runs, 19 doubles, and five triples to go with a team-best 93 hits and 64 runs batted in. The accolades continued to mount, earning All-Big-12 First Team, NCBWA Third Team All-American, ABCA All-Region Second Team, NCAA Norman All-Regional selection, and Big 12 All-Tournament Team member. 

His most recent campaign saw his team’s jump from the Big 12 to the SEC, arguably the hardest conference in all of sports. The catcher made all 60 starts for his team and proved that this jump was not a challenge while leeding the Sooner bats in nearly every offensive category, including: batting average (.329), slugging percentage (.613), total hits (80), total RBIs (62), triples (4), home runs (17), and total bases (149). This earned Carmichael a boatload of accolades, including First Team All-American (C) by Perfect Game and College Baseball Foundation and Second Team All-American by NCBWA and Third Team by Baseball America. 

This ultimately led to Easton being a consensus top 5 catcher eligible for this year’s draft, with a high chance to get selected in the first three rounds. For every player, draft day is different and filled with tons of twists and turns, not sure which teams he would end up going to. 

The Pittsburgh Pirates would be the ones to call his name with the 82nd selection. 

“Draft day was stressful, obviously, seeing how chaotic it was across the board. I got nervous. My buddy actually found out before I did that the Pirates selected me. It all went so fast, my agent didn’t even have time to call me before it was announced, so I was shocked,” Carmichael explained. 

Easton explained to us just what he brings to the table, stating, “I believe I’m kind of my own mix of athleticism, speed, and power, especially as a catcher, so I don’t necessarily model my game after anyone, but I love watching old highlights of Pudge or even the athleticism from Realmuto.”

For Easton Carmichael, this is the beginning of his lifelong dream, but he knows this is only another step in his journey to the big leagues. 

“I want to be remembered as someone who was a go-getter. An athlete and a clubhouse guy. Obviously success on the field is important, but I want to leave a leadership legacy who does it in the Lords name.” 

Fast Facts:

Walk-up song: In college was always Pop Smoke; this past year it was Paranoia

Pregame meal: Energy drink

If not baseball, what would you be doing? : Home renovations or contracting