Thousand Oaks shortstop Muncy selected by A’s in first round of draft
Thousand Oaks High baseball player Max Muncy was selected in the first round — No. 25 overall — of the 2021 Major League Baseball FirstYear Player Draft by the Oakland A’s on Sunday.
Muncy, a 6-foot-1 shortstop, batted .469 with 49 RBIs and 11 home runs in 28 games this spring for the Lancers. He scored 34 runs and stole 10 bases. Defensively, he recorded a team-high 50 assists with a fielding percentage of .928, and helped turn 11 double plays.
Muncy has been under the tutelage of Thousand Oaks coach Jack Wilson, a former MLB shortstop for 12 years, for his whole high school career. Wilson knew Muncy was going to be special.
“He has a passion for the game. He works for it. He’s elite, there’s a reason,” Wilson said of Muncy. “I’m extremely proud. I’ve seen him grow as a player since he was a freshman in high school. He’s been working for this dream for as long
Thousand Oaks High’s Max Muncy had a standout senior season, culminated by being selected by the Oakland A’s in the first round of the MLB draft on Sunday night.
as I’ve known him.”
Muncy, an Arkansas commit, has until Aug. 1 to decide if he wants to forgo his collegiate career or be a professional with the A’s. Most prospects drafted in the first round turn professional.
This is the second straight summer a Daily News Baseball Player of the Year has been selected in the first round of the MLB draft. HarvardWestlake’s Pete CrowArmstrong, the 2019 Daily
News Player of the Year, went to the New York Mets at No. 19 last June.
Thousand Oaks finished the season 29-1, won the Marmonte League crown and the CIF Southern Section Division 2 title while anchored by four standout seniors, Muncy, Oklahoma State commit Roc Riggio, Stanford signee Charlie Saum and pitcher Myles Weiss.
The baseball analysts on ESPN praised Muncy’s bat power and athleticism
defensively, and believe that he could also play third base. Wilson said there’s not a whole lot that he can pass on to Muncy to prepare him for professional baseball.
“Not much you can say, no words can prepare you,” Wilson said. “You have to find out on your own. One thing I will tell him is to not worry about expectations.”
Muncy is not related to Dodgers infielder Max Muncy.