Texas SS Trey Faltine selected with the No. 213 pick by the Cincinnati Reds

With the No. 213 pick in the 2022 MLB Draft, the Cincinnati Reds selected Texas Longhorns redshirt sophomore shortstop Trey Faltine on Monday.

A Fort Bend Travis product who played all nine position in high school, Faltine arrived on the Forty Acres in 2019 as a raw athlete after the Boston Red Sox selected him in the 39th round of the MLB Draft. Working with volunteer assistant coach Troy Tulowitzki, Faltine began to refine his athleticism and quickly emerged as the one of the best defensive shortstops in college baseball thanks to his range and ability to make throws from whatever angle necessary.

At the plate, Faltine developed more slowly, hitting .259 in the shortened 2020 season before batting .249 in 2021 and beginning to show the natural power in his 6’2, 198-pound frame with 18 doubles and five home runs. As a redshirt sophomore, Faltine’s power continued to improve as his batting average jumped to .282 with 18 doubles and 15 home runs, boosting his slugging percentage from .401 to .552.

Unfortunately for Faltine’s draft stock, strikeouts were a major issue for him over his last two seasons, ballooning from 33.2 percent to 43.2 percent, which helps explain why he was ranked as the No. 162 prospect but fell to the No. 213 pick.

To reach the majors and succeed there, Faltine will have to overcome the swing-and-miss in his game by maintaining the power numbers he showed in 2022 or reduce his strikeout rate. There’s no doubt that his glove is Major League quality and that his leadership ability was a major positive for the Longhorns, but it’s his bat that will define his professional career.

The slot value for the No. 213 pick is $218,800.