BALTIMORE -- Hoping to improve their defense in 2016 and beyond, the Union went all in on Georgetown.
With the second and third overall picks in Thursday's MLS SuperDraft, the Union nabbed Joshua Yaro and Philly-area native Keegan Rosenberry - a pair of ex-Hoya defenders they believe will bolster a backline that allowed 55 goals in 2015.
That the two know each other very well also played into it for the Union, who later nabbed star Creighton forward Fabian Herbers with the sixth pick and George Mason left back Tyler Washington at No. 23 in what turned into a very busy draft day.
"It makes it even more gratifying when you see they way they congratulated each other when they were both picked," first-year Union sporting director Earnie Stewart said of Yaro and Rosenberry. "That's major for us in what we want to do. We want to be together, we want to be a team, and two players that have played together in the past and for the next coming years are going to play together, that's going to be fantastic."
Before Thursday's draft, few could have predicted the Union would be able to get their hands on Yaro, an electrifyingly fast center back that seemed to be the consensus top pick.
But moments before the draft began, the Union traded allocation money and a player to be named later to Colorado to get the second pick - on top of the third and sixth overall selections they already had.
That led to the 75 or so Sons of Ben members that packed the Baltimore Convention Center to chant "2-3-6" as MLS commissioner Don Garber spoke on the podium to begin Thursday's festivities.
And when Wake Forest phenom Jack Harrison went No. 1 as the Union expected, Philly was rewarded with the player they coveted in Yaro.
"I didn't sleep very well last night because we had all kinds of plots up our sleeves to try to get the No. 2 spot," Stewart said. "But it's exciting. We succeeded in all the things we wanted to do. … We're pretty happy campers today."
While Yaro was expected to go as early as he did, Rosenberry was more of a surprise at No. 3. Most people believed Stanford left back Brandon Vincent - currently at camp for the U.S. national team - would be the first fullback to come off the board, but Stewart was adamant the Union were "not reaching at all" by taking another Georgetown defender.
Union head coach Jim Curtin agreed.
"Keegan's a guy we've always been high on, a guy who I've coached since he was 16, a guy who's had a heck of a career at Georgetown, a guy whose stock this week at the combine soared," Curtin said. "We were pretty confident in talking with everyone in the room that he was going to be a top-five pick, so we know we needed to make a move and grab him at the third spot."
Playing for the Union will mark the culmination of an interesting journey for Rosenberry, who grew up near Lancaster and played for the Union academy and reserve team before going to Georgetown. But the league essentially determined he didn't play there enough to be eligible for the Union to sign him as a homegrown player, which would have allowed him to bypass the draft.
Rosenberry, who admitted he didn't have "a great understanding of how those rules truly work," said that not signing a deal with the Union before the draft was "a little bit of a disappointment." But that also made it even more exciting - and surprising - when his hometown club swiped him on draft day.
"I think you can draw both conclusions and say, ‘Why would they waste a pick on a guy they should have gotten as a homegrown?' Rosenberry said. "But at the same time, it instills great confidence in me because they still believe I'm worthy of a top pick."
Yaro was similarly pleased that the Union used a top pick on him, especially because they needed to make a trade to ensure they got him.
"I really respect that," he said. "Trading up for a player is always tough. It takes a lot of work and a lot of resources to do that. And I really respect them and I'm really grateful for them to do that to get me."
The Union got another former Big East star in Herbers, who had 15 goals and a school-record 17 assists this past season for Creighton.
Originally from Germany, the Union believe his international pedigree and collegiate dominance will help him at the next level, where he'll compete for time as a winger or striker in Philly.
"In Herbers, we get a player who is a proven goalscorer at the college level," Curtin said. "Over the years, that usually translates pretty well into the pro game. … We were able to pull the trigger and get a guy that we valued very highly. We're very happy to have him on board. He has a goalscorer's mentality, so he'll have a little chip on his shoulder maybe from slipping to six."
The Union rounded out their defensive-heavy draft with the selection of Washington, who they expect to challenge Fabinho at left back.
A George Mason alum who grew up outside New York City, Washington saw his draft stock soar with an excellent combine.
"It's phenomenal," Washington said. "I'm from New York, so I'm an East Coast kid. I went to the Union combine in December and I really fell in love with the organization. I was hoping they would pick me."
