Faedo officially signs with Tigers
The Detroit Tigers announced the signing of first round pick Alex Faedo on Wednesday. Faedo was the ace of a dominant Florida pitching staff that won the programs first NCAA National Championship last month.
The #Tigers today announced the club has agreed to terms with Alex Faedo from the University of Florida.
More ➡️ https://t.co/GYQ5cAGECN pic.twitter.com/GsxULFYees
— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) July 5, 2017
Faedo met with the media shortly after the signing was announced.
MLB Pipeline reports that Faedo’s signing bonus is $3.5 million. The 18th pick value is at $3,214,600, so Faedo did negotiate a better bonus after a stellar postseason at Florida.
Faedo was named the 2017 Most Outstanding Player at the College World Series after striking out 22 batters in 14.1 innings.
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Tebow hits second homer in High-A ball
Tim Tebow continued his hot hitting with the St. Lucie Mets on Wednesday. Tebow hit a solo home run in the third inning to stretch the Mets lead on the Charlotte Stone Crabs to 7-0. The Mets would win the game 8-4.
Just a day earlier the Mets announced attendance of 6,974 was the second highest total to ever see the team.
In the finale of a three game set with the Fort Myers Miracle, an announced attendance of 9,478 set a myriad of Florida State League records.
But most importantly, Tebow is not only succeeding, but he is thriving on playing in front of his “home” fans. Tebow is hitting a robust .360 in nine games since being promoted to High-A ball. He is also seeing the ball better as he has walked six times and has only struck out in five appearances. Tebow’s OPS (albeit a small sample size) is an incredible 1.140.
Turns out, he may actually be able to play this game a little.
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Harrison Bader has homered in three straight games for Memphis Redbirds
Former Florida Gators outfielder Harrison Bader hit a home run in his third straight game for the Memphis Redbirds in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League on Thursday. His 17th homer of the year gives him the highest amount in the St. Louis organization.
Bader is rated as the #6 prospect in the St. Louis Cardinals farm system.
Harrison Bader is truly on a roll 💪 #STLCards No. 6 prospect goes deep in third straight game for @memphisredbirds: https://t.co/VnOtAU6gjz pic.twitter.com/TijYPl16jc
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) July 7, 2017
The 23 year old Bader is the most recent Gator to be on the cusp of a big league promotion as he is hitting .303 with 16 home runs and 41 RBI entering the day. Bader was a third round pick by St. Louis in the 2015 Draft but could see a “Major” promotion coming soon.
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Josh Tobias learning at Double-A
Josh Tobias was drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the 10th round in the 2016 Draft, but was traded to the Boston Red Sox after one season in the organization.
Tobias began the year playing in High-A Salem. However, after cruising to a fast start (.345 batting average), Tobias was promoted to Double-A Portland.
Since joining the Sea Dogs, Tobias has struggled to find consistency at the plate. In 47 games he’s hitting only .264 with a home run and 22 RBIs.
Tobias was the sure handed third baseman for the Gators for three years, but moved to second base since becoming a professional. His excellent glove work has only resulted in only one error since being promoted.
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Thanks for reading The Gator Chomp Blog’s update on former Gators in their pursuit of the major leagues. If you would like an update on any former player, please just leave a comment either here or on the Facebook page here.
Much more to come!