With the 25th pick in the MLB Draft, could the Washington Nationals take a pitcher from the SEC for the second straight year?
Less than a month from now, the Washington Nationals will be making the 25th selection in the first round of the 2017 MLB Draft. As the draft gets closer, we are going to be taking a look at a couple of players the Nats could possibly select with that pick.
One year ago, the Nats took Florida right-hander Dane Dunning with one of their two first round picks. Five years ago, they took Kentucky right-hander Alex Meyer in that round. Could they look to the SEC again 2017 for their first round pick after trading Dunning away this winter?
If they do decide to go that route, one pitcher to watch with that pick is LSU right-hander Alex Lange. In Jim Callis’ mock draft for MLB.com this week, he had Lange as the Nats’ selection with the 25th pick. Here are his thoughts on Lange:
"“Lange is another Southeastern Conference right-hander who had top-10 aspirations and could help his cause by performing well at the league tournament in two weeks.”"
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Now, there is a chance Lange might not be there with the 25th pick. According to Baseball America’s most recent mock draft, they have him going to the Seattle Mariners, who have the 17th pick.
This season, Lange has been one of the best strikeout pitchers in the SEC. His 100 strikeouts in 13 starts are more than any pitcher in the conference. On Thursday, the 21-year-old right-hander struck out nine in a complete game five-hit shutout win over Auburn.
The strikeout capability that Lange has with his fastball has been with him since he started his collegiate career. In each of his three seasons, he has over ten strikeouts per nine innings (according to The Baseball Cube).
Plus, in his freshman year (2015), Lange went 12-0 with a 1.97 ERA in 17 starts. This came in a season where the school went to the College World Series and he won National Freshman Pitcher of the Year. Of course, two of his teammates that year were Astros third baseman Alex Bregman and Washington Nationals outfield prospect Andrew Stevenson.
To get more info on Lange, I talked with Ryan Swiegart, who writes about SEC baseball for the SEC FanSided site, Southbound And Down. Here is what Swiegart had to say about Lange:
"“Fastball is in the low, mid 90s. His W-L has gotten worse in his time at LSU, but after last night his ERA is under 3 for this season. He can go deep into games also, he’s second in the conference in innings pitched. The only thing is he’s inconsistent, he’s given up a decent amount of hits, and can sometimes be a bit wild.”"
To Swiegart’s point, he does only have six wins in 13 starts this year. However, he does throw a ton of innings. This year, his 83.1 innings pitched are the second most of any pitcher in the SEC.
Lange will be a pitcher to watch when the SEC Tournament begins later this month because you will see him face some of the tough offenses in the conference. Heading into today, the Tigers are in first in the SEC West with a 35-17 record (18-9 in league play).
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With four of their last six first round selections, the Washington Nationals have gone with right-handed pitchers. It shouldn’t surprise anyone if Lange continues that trend next month or the Nats could go with a different right-hander.