Heading into the final stretch of the baseball season, six Wolverines find themselves playing at the highest level of America’s pastime.
MLB.com ranks Lucas Giolito ’12 as the third best prospect in the league and ranks him as the number one pitching prospect. He is ranked as the top prospect in the Washington Nationals’ farm system.
Giolito is ascending the Nationals’ minor league farm system. Giolito pitched 69.2 innings for Class A+ Potomac, racking up three wins through 13 games with 11 starts. In late July, Giolito was promoted to Class AA Harrisburg. Giolito has pitched 28.2 innings and has racked up two wins through his first five starts.
Max Fried ’12 was drafted seventh overall in the 2012 MLB June Amateur Draft by the San Diego Padres. After being shut down for the 2014 season, Fried was traded to the Atlanta Braves Dec. 19, 2014. The Braves assigned Fried to the Single A Rome Braves despite having just undergone Tommy John surgery in August. Fried is ranked as the 53rd best prospect by Baseball America.
Right-handed pitcher Jack Flaherty ’14 was drafted 34th overall by the St. Louis Cardinals. Flaherty has pitched 81.0 innings for Class A Peoria, going 8-1 with a 2.33 earned run average and 83 strikeouts through 15 total starts.
Outfielder Austin Wilson ’10 was drafted in the second round by the Seattle Mariners organization in the 2013 MLB June Amateur Draft. Wilson is hitting .224 with eight home runs and 41 RBIs over the course of 100 games this season with Class A+ Bakersfield.
Pitcher Nik Turley ’08 is in his eighth season in the minors. After being drafted by the New York Yankees in the 50th round of the 2008 MLB June Amateur Draft, Turley was traded in early 2015 to the San Francisco Giants. He has started 16 games for Sacramento, going 6-6 with an earned run average of 4.64.
Outfielder Brennan Boesch ’03 was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the third round of the 2006 MLB June Amateur Draft. He is now with the Cincinnati Reds organization. Boesch is hitting .136 this season in 36 appearances.
