2015 MLB Draft: Will Chicago White Sox draft Dillon Tate?
We are in the month of the 2015 MLB First-Year Player Draft, and the Chicago White Sox will be drafting in the first round with the No. 8 overall selection.
Last year, the White Sox selected Carlos Rodon with the No. 3 overall selection, and that has turned out well with the left-handed pitcher already on the big league starting rotation and in the bullpen this season.
John Manuel of Baseball America has the White Sox selecting Dillon Tate, a right-handed pitcher from UC Santa Barbara with the eighth pick in what is the fourth version of their mock draft.
Manuel wrote on the RHP Tate in the most recent mock draft:
"“Tate’s stock has tumbled some in recent weeks as his velocity and location on his fastball have backed up, but he has better present stuff than (Jon) Harris (Missouri State), who is a safer bet to start but has a lower ceiling.”"
Tate seems to be the style of pitcher the White Sox are interested in, that being a good, solid arm out of college, and a player who is a little older than drafting a player straight from the high school ranks.
Also with Tate, the Baseball Cube had the following stats on the RHP for his 2015 season:
• 8-5 record
• 14 starts
• 2.26 ERA
• 103.1 innings pitched
• 26 earned runs
• 111 strikeouts
• 28 walks
• 0.91 WHIP
Those were just his stats from this past season. For three years at the collegiate level, the 21-year-old has a career 2.16 ERA in 46 games, with all his starts coming this past season.
He pitched a total of 150 innings, where he walked just 47 batters and struck out 158 batters. He allowed 36 career earned runs, and his WHIP was 1.01 in three seasons.
One interesting stat for Tate is his K/BB, which for his career is 3.36.
I like the White Sox going with a pitcher here, because they need pitching for the future, especially if they are not able to re-sign Jeff Samardzija. By the time Tate could be ready for the Majors, John Danks‘ outrageous contract will be completed, leaving a spot empty in the rotation as well.
What position would you like to see the White Sox select with the eighth overall selection? Let us know!
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