Avitia, Barnes sign with MLB clubs

Grand Canyon seniors David Avitia and Zach Barnes have inked free-agent deals with professional clubs. A four-year Lopes catcher, Avitia signed with the Chicago Cubs on Thursday. Barnes was a three-year member of the Lopes pitching staff and signed with the hometown Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday.

"We are fired up for David and Zach," Lopes head coach Andy Stankiewicz said. "They both have been great ambassadors for GCU baseball and tremendous competitors on the field. Both deserve this opportunity and we have no doubt they will make the Cubs and Diamondbacks proud."

Avitia and Barnes join a trio of Lopes selected earlier this week in the 2021 MLB Draft. A GCU-heavy 14th round saw all three Lopes get picked, sending shortstop Channy Ortiz to the Diamondbacks, closer Frankie Scalzo to the Cubs and starting pitcher Pierson Ohl to the Minnesota Twins.

Avitia and Barnes become the 18th and 19th non-drafted free agent signings in program history. The Lopes had Drew Smith (Milwaukee Brewers) and Cuba Bess (Boston Red Sox) sign as free agents a year ago. Free-agent signings represent players who likely would have been drafted when the draft spanned 40 rounds as recently as 2019. Last year's draft was five rounds and it has been halved from 40 to 20 from this year's draft on.

Avitia was the Lopes' primary catcher for four years and he amassed over 1,000 innings behind the plate. One of the nation's premier defensive catchers, Avitia stopped over half of opponent's stolen base attempts the last three seasons (35 of 69, 50.7%) and caught 39 of 88 (44.3%) for his career.

"I am excited to continue my career with the Cubs and see what the future holds," Avitia said. "All I wanted was a chance and this is it. I know it won't be easy but I'm going to do everything I can to further my career. Everyone and everything at GCU and outside of GCU has helped me prepare for this. I want to thank Stank, Walli (assistant coach Gregg Wallis), Paul Panaccione, Jon Wente and just the whole staff at GCU for everything they have done for me and my family.

"I also want to thank my family, friends, old coaches and just everyone that has helped me along the way with their support — and there has been a lot — because without them I would not be here. GCU has given me lifelong friends and memories that I will always appreciate. GCU has been everything for my family and I will always be a part of GCU baseball."

Avitia's younger brother, Daniel, is a GCU signee out of Alhambra High School. A highly-touted pitcher, he was drafted by the Cubs in the 19th round of the draft. Avitia will also join Scalzo in the Cubs organization.

Barnes tossed 112 innings in his Lopes career, striking out 102 batters in the process. He worked out of the GCU bullpen as a sophomore and junior before making the move to the starting rotation as a senior in 2021. Barnes posted a 4.42 ERA as a Lope and was the winning pitcher nine times over the likes of USC, Missouri and New Mexico State.

"This feeling is surreal," Barnes said. "This is everything I have worked for, and I am beyond excited for what the future holds. I can't thank the Arizona Diamondbacks enough for giving me this opportunity, and GCU for giving me a home and place to grow for the last three years. Lastly, I want to give thanks to my family, friends, teammates and coaches for all of their support along the way."

GCU now has 15 representatives who are actively in affiliated professional baseball.

Grand Canyon University Athletics

Players Mentioned

David Avitia

Zach Barnes

Cuba Bess

Pierson Ohl

Channy Ortiz

Frankie Scalzo

Drew Smith

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