COLLEGE STATION, TX — Texas A&M sophomore right-handed pitcher Kasey Kalich was selected in the fourth round of the 2019 MLB Draft by the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday afternoon.
Kalich finished the 2019 campaign with a 3-1 record, 12 saves, 3.18 ERA and 51 strikeouts in 34.0 innings of work. His 12 saves ranked fourth on Texas A&M's single season list. He was a semifinalist for the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Award, recognizing the nation's top relief pitcher.
The Victoria, Texas, native transferred after one season as a starting pitcher at Blinn College. That season he posted pedestrian numbers with a 3-2 record, 4.86 ERA and 48 strikeouts in 46.1 innings.
It marks the third time in the last four seasons that Coach Rob Childress has taken a junior college transfer and needed just one season to mold them into a pitcher drafted in the first five rounds. He performed the magic with Jace Vines in 2016 and Nolan Hoffman in 2018.
The Aggies had three players drafted in the first two days of the draft with Braden Shewmake selected by the Braves in the first round and John Doxakispicked by the Tampa Bay Rays in the second round. With Kalich drafted with the 127th overall pick, it marked the earliest the Aggies have had three players drafted since 2003 when Brian Finch, Scott Beerer and Logan Kensing were snapped up in the first 53 picks.
