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The Detroit Tigers selected right-handed pitcher Drew Smith out of Dallas Baptist University with the No. 99 overall pick of the 2015 Major League Baseball amateur player draft. Smith is a 6'2", 173 pound sophomore from Crowley, Texas.
Smith follows the same mold of Tigers first round pick Beau Burrows. While a bit undersized for a prototypical starter, Smith has plenty of fastball velocity in his tank. MLB.com reported that Smith hit 99 miles per hour on the radar gun last season when working in relief for Dallas Baptist.
Smith made 15 appearances for the Patriots last season, including eight starts. He allowed a 4.35 ERA in 41 1/3 innings with 33 strikeouts to 17 walks. Smith struck out 70 batters to 53 walks in 95 innings in his career with Dallas Baptist.
The pick, their first of day two of the draft, follows the trend the Tigers set on day one of going against the consensus pre-draft rankings. Smith was ranked as the 143rd best prospect in the draft by Baseball America. Minor League Ball ranked him 224th overall. Fangraphs' Kiley McDaniel tabbed Smith as a future pro reliever, ranking him 133rd overall.