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James Quinn-Irons bats for the George Mason Patriots against James Madison University (courtesy George Mason Athletics)<\/p>\n
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Virginia Tech pitcher Griffin Stieg (via Hokie Sports)<\/p>\n
Two Fairfax County natives are a step closer to achieving their professional baseball dreams after being chosen in the 2025 MLB draft<\/a>.<\/p>\n James Quinn-Irons<\/a>, a Reston resident who currently attends and plays for George Mason University, was selected by<\/a> the Tampa Bay Rays in the draft\u2019s fifth round on Monday (July 14). He was the 147th overall pick.<\/p>\n McLean is also represented in this year\u2019s draft, with the Seattle Mariners selecting McLean High School graduate and Virginia Tech student Griffin Stieg<\/a> in the 18th round with the 542nd overall pick.<\/p>\n A graduate of South Lakes High School, Quinn-Irons concluded his Seahawks career with a standout senior year, hitting .471 with six home runs and earning Concorde Conference Player of the Year, among other honors, according to his GMU bio.<\/p>\n Now an outfielder and computer science major at Mason, his offensive skills were tempered by high strikeout and miss rates during his sophomore year, when he first became eligible for the draft, but after \u201csome serious adjustments,\u201d he finished his junior year with an impressive .419\/.523\/.734 line, MLB\u2019s draft tracker says.<\/p>\n That performance helped the Patriots<\/a> secure a postseason spot this spring, though they fell short in the Atlantic 10 championship game against Rhode Island at Capital One Park in Tysons.<\/p>\n \u201cI used to get wrapped up in stats, but now it\u2019s more about the process \u2014 whether I\u2019ve been patient, worked the count, and done the little things,\u201d Quinn-Irons said in a GMU press release on his team\u2019s championship bid. \u201cYou can\u2019t always control getting a hit or driving someone in, but you can control your approach. It\u2019s just a mindset.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition to being named the A-10 Player of the Year, Quinn-Irons became the first athlete in GMU\u2019s history to become a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award, which is given every year to the country\u2019s best amateur baseball player. He was also invited to the 2025 MLB Draft combine, held June 17-21 at Chase Field in Phoenix, Arizona, for the nation\u2019s top prospects.<\/p>\n \u201cJames is a special talent who hits for power and average, and uses the entire field,\u201d said George Mason head coach Shawn Camp, a former MLB pitcher himself. \u201cHe has a strong arm and runs the bases very well, and he\u2019s a leader on and off the field. He has trusted the process here at George Mason from day one and we are all looking forward to watching him at the professional level.\u201d<\/p>\n An outfielder and pitcher who just finished his junior year at Virginia Tech, Stieg was born in Fairfax in 2004 and graduated from McLean High School in 2022 after helping the Highlanders to a 17-7 record and a Liberty District tournament championship. He also played football and basketball in high school.<\/p>\n Improvements in his pitching abilities put him on scouts\u2019 radar for the MLB draft that year, but Stieg was eager to go to college at Virginia Tech and opted to stick to that path after fielding potential offers to turn pro out of high school, the Sun Gazette reported at the time<\/a>.<\/p>\n After mostly pitching in relief as a freshman, Stieg became a starting pitcher for the Hokies as a sophomore and showed enough promise \u201cto generate buzz\u201d for his junior year, MLB\u2019s draft tracker says. However, he had to undergo Tommy John surgery at the end of last season and was ultimately unable to pitch this year.<\/p>\n The limited college experience also contributed to<\/a> Stieg dropping down in the draft, but his pitching arsenal, led by a \u201ctwo-seam sinking fastball that has extreme run to it,\u201d suggests he has the \u201cmakings of a back-end starter,\u201d scouting reports said.<\/p>\n Stieg\u2019s older brother, Drew, was also a standout baseball player at McLean High who went on to play for George Mason. His death<\/a> from a drug overdose in 2023 led the family to establish the Drew Stieg Aspiring Wellness Program<\/a>, a nonprofit dedicated to mental health education and awareness particularly among teens and student-athletes.<\/p>\n \u201cHe shaped me to be the person I am today,\u201d Griffin Stieg said of his brother in a story for Virginia Tech<\/a>. \u201cThings he has taught me contribute to how I play. He taught me work ethic, how to show up and how to play the game the right way.\u201d<\/p>\n