Justin Lebron Picked By Cincinnati Reds In MLB Draft

Alabama junior shortstop Justin Lebron was the 18th pick in the first round of the MLB Draft by the Cincinnati Reds. Lebron was born in the Bronx, NY but moved with his family to Miramar, Florida at an early age. Originally commited to Rice, Lebron got a late offer from Alabama and flipped to the Tide. Lebron is the 7th first round pick in school history, and the second highest after outfielder Joe Vitello went number seven to Kansas City in 1991. Alabama has a had a first round pick for three years in a row now, Ben Hess in 2024 to the Yankees and Riley Quick in 2025 to the Twins.

Coming to Alabama at 155 pounds soaking wet, Lebron was expected to be a defensive stalwart, but wasn’t expected to do much offensively. However the athletic infielder shocked the baseball world in his freshman campaign, hitting .338/.429/.546 with an OPS of .975 while stroking nine doubles, 12 home runs, 73 hits, 56 runs, and stealing seven bases in seven attempts. For his efforts Lebron was named All SEC, All Freshman SEC, All SEC Defensive Team, Freshman All American, and second team All American. After the season Lebron played on the US National Team.

By his sophomore season Lebron had put on several pounds of muscle and exploded with a .316 average, 73 hits, 18 doubles, 18 home runs, 72 RBI, a slash line of .316/.421/.636 and an OPS of 1.058. In addition the speedy infielder stole 17 bases in 18 tries. Again the awards came, All SEC and All American.

Lebron returned for his junior season measuring in at 6’3″ and 195 pounds. In helping lead the Tide to the College World Series for the first time in 27 years, Lebron put up a .277 average with 16 home runs, 13 doubles, 48 RBI, a slash line of .277/.386/.572 and a .984 OPS, while managing to steal 42 bases in 43 attempts. Even with his numbers down a bit, Lebron still made All American teams, and was All Region for the third straight year. In his three year career Lebron hit .309 with 212 hits, 40 doubles, 46 home runs, 152 RBI, 392 total bases, 82 walks, 43 hit by pitches, and 66 stolen bases in 68 attempts.

What will the Reds be getting in Lebron?

Cincinnati will get a player with all five tools, hitting, hitting for power, speed, fielding, and arm strength. Lebron is a plus runner, has plus speed, a dynamic glove, a powerful arm, and has a three year batting average over .300. The Reds will get a team first player that plays the game with passion and a certain flare. They also will get a great teammate with outstanding loyalty. After each of his first two seasons Lebron had multiple opportunities to transfer from Alabama for a huge NIL package, but remained loyal to his team, his coaches, and his teammates.

Matt Reida was the lead recruiter for the Tide when Lebron was in high school at Arch Bishop McCarthy in Fort Lauderdale. Reida, now the Recruiting Coordinator at Coastal Carolina says that “‘when I first saw Justin he was really skinny, but he had all the actions and makings of a great player.” Reida went on to say “he was super twitchy, but just needed to gain 20 pounds.” “I saw him a lot when he was younger, and always liked him a lot, and by his senior year he started coming into his strength.” The coach continued, ” we knew he was a great person, a unique individual, with a great family.” “I knew the power was in there and would just be a matter of time when he put on the weight and gained strength. It was obvious he would have pro opportunities out of high school.” “A unique thing about Justin is he could thrive at several different positions in the big leagues. Even though we felt he could play shortstop for us right away, he didn’t really play shortstop at his high school. He played mostly centerfield and third base, and he could play anywhere on the field and succeed.” Reida finished by saying, “‘In my opinion he is the overall most talented player in the draft.”

Alabama head coach Rob Vaughn was named Alabama’s head coach in June of 2023 and soon headed south to re-recruit Lebron after the coaching change. Vaughn has continually heaped praised on Lebron for his hard work, attention to detail, and love of his teammates.

In short the Reds will get:

1. A five tool player
2. A hard worker
3. A loyal and terrific teammate
4. A twitchy athlete that should stick at shortstop, but could play multiple positions at an all-star level
5. A player with the “it” factor that can be the face of a franchise
6. A player with an incredible baseball IQ

All in all, the Cincinnati made a fantastic pick of a great player and great human being.

Roll Tide!