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Chicago White Sox select Texas RHP signee Jared Kelley with 47th overall pick

The Refugio product was recently named the Gatorade National Baseball Player of the Year.

Jared Kelley
Gatorade

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.

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.