Dillon Tate 2015 Bowman Draft Future Watch, Rangers – Dillon Tate is a first round selection from the 2015 MLB Draft as the 4th overall pick by the Texas Rangers. He’s a right-handed pitcher and a California native who is currently pitching for UC Santa Barbara in his home state.
At 6′-2″, 200lbs he certainly has the right body type for the position. At 21 the Rangers get a pitcher who’s arm has more seasoning than a youngster. The odd part is that he was un-drafted out of high school. Stephen Strasburg has that same distinction. Either way he’s one of the top collegiate pitchers. In 2015 he had a 2.26 ERA and 111 strikeouts in just over 103 innings. That’s impressive at any level.
Tate was one of the 21 finalists for USA Baseball’s Golden Spike award (the first in UC Santa Barbara history), denoting the best amateur player in the country. He’s loaded with talent, he’s a hard worker and he almost started the year out of the bullpen. But he overcame it all and now he’s on a great path to the big leagues.
Tate’s first MLB licensed autographed baseball card can be found in 2015 Bowman Draft Baseball, card number BCA-DT. He may not have the buzz of the aforementioned Strasburg but player collectors should be paying attention to him. He is the first UCSB Gaucho to be drafted in the top two rounds.
Take a look at his easy flame throwing motion here:
According to his MLB.com draft profile:
Tate had the best pure stuff in Team USA’s talented bullpen, and he was able to maintain it as a starter. He has two well above-average pitches, pairing a lively 92-98 mph fastball with a sharp 85-89 mph slider. His expected MLB debut date is sometime in 2017.
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