Tigers Select Florida RHP Alex Faedo in First Round of MLB Draft

The Major League Baseball draft started on Monday and with their first round selection the Detroit Tigers selected Alex Faedo out of Florida 18th overall.

Faedo is a right handed pitcher who started 17 games as a sophomore this season for the Florida Gators. His record is 7-2 with a 2.60 ERA and a WHIP (walk + hits per inning) of 1.15. He leads Florida pitchers with 135 strikeouts on the year in 109.1 innings.

Faedo comes in at 6'5" 225 pounds and sports a 55 overall grade in MLB's scouting index (scaled 20-80). His fastball has a 60 grade while his slider is his best pitch with a 65 rating.

Faedo was ranked 11th in the MLB's Draft Top 200 but fell to the 18th selection due in part to him coming back from arthroscopic knee surgery back in September. His rehab clearly went well if he was able to produce at the level he did for Florida this season.

Faedo's coach Kevin O'Sullivan was quoted by the Orlando Sentinel:

"He (Faedo) doesn't hide his emotions when he's pitching. I think the other players really respect him, not just because of his ability, but because he is one of those guys that is out here having fun with his team."

Interestingly, this is the second time the Tigers have drafted Faedo. They drafted him as a 40th round pick in his senior year of high school.

The Tigers also own the 57th overall pick later tonight in the 2nd round.