Lincoln-Way West's Conor Essenburg reacts to being taken by Atlanta Braves in MLB draft. ‘Hit me like a train.'

Chicago Tribune

4 days ago

Conor Essenburg convinced himself that he could remain a cool customer throughout the MLB draft.
But when Essenburg, an outfielder/pitcher who graduated this spring from Lincoln-Way West, heard his name called Monday, the moment was overwhelming.
'I wasn't expecting it at all, so it hit me like a train,' Essenburg said. 'I wasn't expecting to cry whatsoever, but once I heard my name on the TV and saw my picture up there, I came to a moment of realization like, 'Oh my gosh, I actually got drafted. This is insane.'
'I have to admit there were some tears. This has been my dream since I was a little kid. It finally came true. I'm just super pumped.'
Essenburg, the 2025 Daily Southtown Baseball Player of the Year, was taken by the Atlanta Braves in the fifth round with the 157th overall pick.
Although he had committed to Kentucky, Essenburg plans to sign with the Braves and forgo college.
'I'm extremely excited to be a part of the Braves organization,' Essenburg said. 'I've only heard great things about them. Even the players they have on the team now, I'm super pumped about them and hopefully I get the chance to meet them. That would be awesome.
'All my glory to God. He's given me so many talents here and the ability to do everything that I've done.'
Essenburg expected a bit longer of a wait. He said he did not learn of Atlanta's plans to draft him until moments before the pick was made.
'I was talking to my agent,' Essenburg said. 'We had an expectation for one round later for a different team and then I found out the Braves were taking me literally 10 seconds before the pick went in. Honestly, it was crazy.'
Lincoln-Way West coach Jake Zajc was thrilled for his standout pupil.
'It's awesome,' Zajc said. 'It's a great day. To have a player be able to go through this and then to actually have it happen, it's great. This is a goal he set out five or six years and it all came to fruition (Monday).'
Zajc said he knew even before Essenburg started his career with the Warriors that he could be a future pro.
'He had special qualities and special skills and some strength even when he was younger, plus his hand speed and his competitiveness,' Zajc said. 'Sometimes, you have kids who get those skills and they don't work hard to build on them.
'Conor's a kid who had those initial skills and then worked really hard to improve on all of those skills.'
Essenburg thrived as a two-way star at Lincoln-Way West over the last three seasons and put together his best performance this spring.
As a senior, Essenburg batted .464 with 42 runs, 11 doubles, 19 stolen bases, 10 homers and 49 RBIs. On the mound, he finished 5-0 with a 0.94 ERA and a whopping 94 strikeouts in 44 2/3 innings.
MLB.com analyst Jim Callis, during a stream of the draft, said some teams liked Essenburg as a pitcher while others viewed him as an outfielder. The Braves announced him as the latter.
'As a hitter, he's got a chance to a chance to have 20-homer power,' Callis said.
This spring, Essenburg said he would prefer to be a position player in the pros, calling pitching his 'backup plan.'
'I'm in love with hitting,' Essenburg said at that time.
After being drafted, he will get a chance to put that passion on display as a pro.
'If you think about it, there's nothing better in this world than getting paid to play baseball every single day of your life,' Essenburg said. 'Obviously, I've loved this game since I was a little kid and this has always been my dream.
'Now, I'm getting paid to play it. That's just awesome, and I'm just extremely pumped up and ready to get going.'