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Texas Longhorns baseball signee and the nations No. 1 right-handed pitcher Jared Kelley was selected by the Chicago White Sox with the 47th pick in the 2020 MLB Draft on Thursday.
With their 2nd-round pick (No. 47 overall) of the 2020 #MLBDraft, the #WhiteSox select Refugio (TX) High School RHP Jared Kelley, No. 12 on the Top 200 Draft Prospects list: https://t.co/tEldal9e7c
— MLB Draft (@MLBDraft) June 11, 2020
Watch live: https://t.co/cmm19LX2BQ pic.twitter.com/9RE5Tonw5t
Kelley, who was as the No. 12 prospect by Baseball America before the draft, was an integral piece to David Pierce’s 2020 recruiting class, ranked No. 1 overall.
From Refugio, Texas, the birthplace of Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan, Kelley was named the 2020 Gatorade Player of the Year while only completing three starts this season before COVID-19 caused the cancellation of the baseball season.
Kelley did not allow a single hit in those three games and struck out 34 of the 36 batters he faced. He completed his high school career with a 32-3 record and a 0.43 ERA for the Refugio Bobcats. With a fastball that can reach 100 mph and an excellent changeup, Kelley is the definition of a big-framed power pitcher, but he’s also known as a high-level competitor on the mound.
Kelley joins shortstop Carson Tucker and right-handed pitcher Jared Jones as the third Longhorns signee to be selected in the MLB Draft.
“Growing up, I’ve always been a UT fan,” Kelley told Texas athletics. “I took a visit my junior year and it just felt like home. I knew as soon as I saw the Texas campus that it was going to be my home for a couple of years.”
Texas has seen two right-handed pitchers get selected in the abbreviated MLB draft so far, with several more prospects from the 2020 class projected as potential selections before it’s all said and done.