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Tigers go pitching with first pick
Round 2, Jake Thompson, RHP, Rockwall-Heath High School, Texas
With the 91st overall pick on the 2012 First-Year Player Draft, the Tigers went with pitching. They selected Jake Thompson, a 6-foot-4, 235-pound right-handed pitcher out of Rockwall-Heath High School in Heath, Texas.
According to his bio on MLB.com, the 18-year-old has a fastball that sits in the low 90s and is accompanied by a slider and changeup. In an interview with Scout.com, Thompson said he also has a sinker, describing himself as a “fastball-sinker guy.”
Thompson is committed to play ball for TCU, next season, however, the hope is that he’ll decide to sign. Thompson told Scout.com he’ll weigh the options and make a “smart decision.”
“I think everybody wants to play professional baseball and I do for sure,” he said. “It just depends at what point I go and play … I just want to make sure that the decision makes sense.”
Round 3, Austin Schotts, OF, Centennial High School, Texas
The Tigers took another Texas high school player with their third-round selection. At pick No. 121, outfielder Austin Schotts, a 5-foot-11, 180-pounder out of Centennial High School was taken.
His MLB.com bio describe him as having “incredible speed” and “great range.” Schotts played shortstop in high school, however, if he forgoes his commitment to play for Oklahoma State, the Tigers hope to turn him into a center fielder.
The bio also called him one of the more “polished” prep bats, but said he could be a tough sign.
Round 4, Drew VerHagen, RHP, Vanderbilt
The 6-foot-6, right-handed junior out of Vanderbilt was taken by the Tigers with pick no. 154 in the fourth round. VerHagen is another Texas-native and is actually from the same high school as Thompson.
He is 6-3 with a 3.50 ERA in 27 appearances and seven starts for the Commodores this season and is expected to be a reliever in the big leagues.
Round 5, Joe Rogers, LHP, Central Florida
The Tigers went for another arm in the fifth round, making it three out of their first four picks that they took pitching. With the 184th pick, the Tigers nabbed Joe Rogers, a left-hander out of Central Florida.
Rogers is a six-foot, 200-pound junior who went 4-1 with a 1.60 ERA in 39 1/3 innings of relief as a captain for the Knights. According to Mark Anderson of Scout.com, Rogers has a upper-80s, low-90s fastball with a curveball and a changeup.
Round 6, Jordan John, LHP, Oklahoma
John is a 6-foot-3, 205-pound left-hander that went 8-5 with a 2.23 ERA in 22 appearances for the Sooners this season. He struck out 86 batters over 96 2/3 innings.
Round 7, Hudson Randall, RHP, Florida
As a sophomore, Randall was chosen as an Honorable Mention All-American by College Baseball Insider. As a junior, Randall is leading the pitching staff of what is ranked as the No. 1 college team in the country. He is 8-2 with a 2.83 ERA in 14 starts for the Gators.
Round 8, Jeff McVaney, LF, Texas State University
McVaney leads Texas State in almost all hitting categories. He owns a .338 batting average with 21 doubles, 10 home runs, 48 RBIs and has scored 46 runs in 56 games. His father John McVaney, played in the Majors for the Orioles.
Round 9, Jake Stewart, CF, Stanford
Stewart was drafted in the 14th round by the Phillies out of high school but elected to play ball for Stanford. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound center fielder is hitting .290 in 46 games for the Cardinal. He is second on the team in doubles (15) and third in RBIs (27).
Round 10, Charles Gillies, RHP, The Master’s College
Was named the Golden State Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Year after leading the conference in innings pitched (92 2/3), ERA (1.94), opposing batting average (.180) and strikeouts (108).
Round 11, Bennett Pickar, C, Oral Roberts
Round 12, Julio Felix, RHP, Pima Community College
Round 13, Devon Travis, 2B, Florida State
Round 14, Hunter Scantling, RHP, Florida State
Round 15, Jordan Dean, SS, Central Michigan

