Hawai’i designated hitter and catcher Austin Machado signed a free agent deal with the Atlanta Braves following this past weekend’s MLB Draft and will begin his pro career in the coming weeks.

Machado made a huge impact in his only year as a Rainbow Warrior, earning second-team ABCA All-Region honors and second-team All-Big West recognition. A Hawai’i player has now either been drafted or signed an undrafted free agent deal following each of the last 48 seasons dating back to 1977.

The Cardiff By The Sea, Calif. native led the team hitting .351 in 2023 with four homers and 48 RBIs, He also led the team and finished second in the Big West with 19 doubles. Machado reached base in 52 of the 53 games and ended the year sixth in the conference with a .473 on-base percentage.

Machado started 34 games as the designated hitter while getting 18 starts behind the plate. He worked 38 walks and was hit by a pitch eight times while striking out just 23 times. The junior also led the team with 13 multi-RBI games and was second with 18 multiple-hit games.

A second-team All-Big West honoree, Machado also led the team in hitting during Big West play, batting .342 while hitting three homers to go along with 10 doubles and 25 RBIs.