Jun
21
2008 Draft Picks: John Rye, Kyle Higashioka, William Mitchell
Posted by M. Patel under Prospects
This post is part of the MLB Draft 2008 get-to-know the draftees series.
John Rye, is a 6’1, 200lbs. Senior out of Florida State University. Rye, who turned 22 in March can play any outfield position, but specializes in right field. Otherwise known as Jack, he played his high school baseball in Irvine, CA, at Woodbridge High School. He bats and throws left.
As a Junior, John was named the team captain at FSU, and started all 62 games for the Seminoles. He also hit 10 homeruns, and drove in 61 runs, which ranked second on his team in both categories. In his senior season (2008), John hit .371, which ranked fourth on his team, starting 61 of 62 games. He hit 7 homeruns, and drove in 52, ranking 6th in both categories for the ‘Noles.
John’s father was a collegiate baseball pitcher at UCLA.
Kyle Higashioka, a catcher from Edison High School in Huntington Beach California was selected by the Yankees as the 30th pick and the 230rd overall pick in the draft.
Kyle stands at 6’1, and weighs 180lbs, and has been a catcher his entire baseball career. His best attribute is of course his defensive prowess behind the plate, but he also seems to have potential to become a power hitting catcher. Some say Kyle reminds them of Victor Martinez. The Yankees would love to get a young catcher like that.
Higashioka, and his agent have told the Yankees they will need to sign him for $500,000 for him to pass up his opportunity to play collegiate ball for the Golden Bears of the University of California.
William Mitchell, a 6’2, 165lbs. righthanded pitcher was selected in the 12th round of the 2008 MLB draft. Mitchell, otherwise named D.J., turned 21 in May, and became the first Clemson Tiger to be drafted by the Yankees since 1990.
During the 2008 season, Mitchell went 6-5 with an ERA of 3.47, in 20 starts. He allowed 97 hits, while walking 40 batters, and striking out 106 in 98 innings. The strikeout total for Mitchell was the most since Kris Benson struck out 204 during the 1996 season.
Mitchell throws in the mid 90’s with great movement. He appears to be very versatile, and was used quite often in the outfield for Clemson. Projections show that Mitchell will be a mid to late inning reliever, with a shot at starting if everything shakes out well for him.
This post is part of the MLB Draft 2008 get-to-know the draftees series.
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2 Responses to “2008 Draft Picks: John Rye, Kyle Higashioka, William Mitchell”
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Yo Patel, you’ve been doing great on following up on the yanks draft picks, nice job!
Thanks for the complements, Matt