Orioles southpaw John Means must have been a proud brother when he took the mound for his start against the Rangers in Arlington, after the Royals selected his younger sibling, Jake, in the 22nd round of the MLB Draft on Wednesday.

Orioles southpaw John Means must have been a proud brother when he took the mound for his start against the Rangers in Arlington, after the Royals selected his younger sibling, Jake, in the 22nd round of the MLB Draft on Wednesday.

Kansas City with the steal of the draft! Love you brother, can’t wait for you to get started @jacobbeans9 https://t.co/3rw6PRbI9Q — John Means (@JMeans25) June 5, 2019

Jake Means is an infielder out of Indiana State University, and he and John both grew up in Gardner, Kan. The Orioles’ public relations department shared a pair of photos from the Means boys’ childhood, including one from a Royals podium, taken when he and his teammates went on a tour of Kauffman Stadium as part of John's birthday party, and another with both of them wearing “Future Pro” T-shirts. Those shirts turned out to be quite prophetic.

Means is thrilled that his kid brother is joining the pro ranks.

"I'm so excited for him," he said. "He's a fifth year senior in college. The fact that he gets a chance to play and experience what I've experienced, it's going to be a lot of fun."

John Means, the Orioles’ 11th-round selection in 2014 out of West Virginia University, is off to a great start in his first full season as a big leaguer. The left-hander is carrying a 2.67 ERA across 14 appearances, including 10 starts, while pairing 50 strikeouts with one walks across 60 2/3 innings.