Sox draft Casey Kelly
With the 30th pick in round one of today's first-year player draft, the Red Sox selected shortstop Casey Kelly from Sarasota High in Sarasota, Fla. The 6-foot-3 inch, 195-pound Kelly is also a pitcher, and was ranked as the No. 31 quarterback prospect in 2008 by ESPN.com
As a senior at Sarasota High School, Kelly hit .473 (44-for-93) with 13 doubles, one triple, five homers, 31 RBIs and 11 steals in 2008. The righthander also took the mound in 12 games, going 8-1 with two saves and a 1.16 ERA. He fanned 77 and walked just 12 over 66 innings of work.
MLB.com says: "One of the better athletes in the class, whoever drafts Kelly will have to lure him from being a two-sport star at the University of Tennessee, where he is a quarterback recruit. Big and athletic, he has all the tools to play shortstop. The main question is whether he'll swing the bat well enough and that could determine his draft status as a hitter. As a pitcher, he's a bit raw, but has the makings of three outstanding pitches and could be more intriguing to scouts on the mound."
Take a look at some footage of Kelly playing:
Casey is the son of Pat Kelly, a former major league catcher who played for the Blue Jays in 1980. Pat Kelly also served as the Reds' manager in the Gulf Coast League. Casey has signed to play baseball and football at Tennessee.
The Red Sox also selected 6-foot-4 righthanded pitcher Bryan Price from Rice University with their second pick in the compensation round.
As a junior at Rice, Price went 3-4 with two saves and a 3.65 ERA in 27 appearances. He had 50 strikeouts and walked 24 in 44 1/3 innings, an average of 10.2 K’s per nine innings pitched.
Get more details on Kelly and Price, and keep up with the rest of the Sox picks in our Red Sox draft tracker.
Information from the Red Sox media relations department was used in this update.
Comment
Permalink
Email
Fans put together better draft information than the Herald and Globe writers do. Assign an intern to do some work. The MLB draft is becoming very important to fans.
Steve, in regards to the draft, a lot of the players selected are college-bound. How long do the Red Sox have to sign these players?
Hmm, questionable pick. Nothing like the picks of the last few years with Jacoby and some stellar pitching. The kid looks like he has a slow bat, and a straight fastball...
and a chance to play D1 football...
finally the sox have chance t obe decenet in the draft and used it goodtime to spend some good money .....but he also could be great fit for the new offensive coordinator at tennessee( go vols).. kelly could become better than average if the money doesnt get him first and swell that helmit....but by all means, go sox
My only comment is how can this kid have a questionable bat when he was hitting, .473 in 6A in Florida? The scout who wrote that orginal report, probably saw one game where he didnt get a hit. As far as being a short stop, ive seen this kid in person, and believe me he has everything- range, power, quick feet, and a real sense of the game. This kid is going to be something special for sure.
I have watch Kelley play from little league to high school, and he isn't that great. His pitches are all straight and he does have a slow swing. He's a much better football QB than a baseball player. If he gets injured early, he is done for. He hasnothing to fall back on. He should go play for the Vols and let his game mature. Sure he was a standout in high school, but high school is nothing like MLB.
Wasted Pick. Strikeout King! Showed today where he faced off against his Dad who coaches the GCL Reds.
O for 5 with 3 Ks.
Wood is a foreign object to him and so is anything with spin on it.
Average HS pitching, he'll dominate. Can name 100 guys this past year that can do that.
He's going to the mound. Matter of time. Will never get to the big leagues. Wasted money, wasted pick. Overrated!
HE ANT A WASTED PICK.
WHAT TEAM DO YOU PLAY FOR?
WHATS YOUR STATS?
AND NAME 100 GUYS
YOUR A IDIOT ENVY OF THIS KID CAUSE HES LIVING YOUR DREAM
AND YOU LIVE WITH YOUR MOM
What if they do live with their mom? What if they're, like, 13 years old? You want them to have a full time job and a house already?
Oh, and by using all caps, you are the one who is more likely to be living with his mom, due the obvious "issues" you are dealing with.
None of you guys know the real deal and why. I coached Casey as a kid through football. I know him and his family better then any of you. They know what their doing. Let's look at htis and one name FSU's Weinke. Here is the thought...Casey got 2.5 million reasons for this signing and still can fall back to football and make it happen in the college areana. I watched every football game he played in HS. Why because he and my son were the only two to make Varsity as entering sophomore. Both were considered as freshmen but remiained Casey broke collarbone and my son wanted reps, reps, reps as DE. Casey was a pro style QB and yes that is not hte norm anymore in football unless you play for the likes of someone like Fullmer who I personally talked to at the Outback bowl last year and thought this guy to be good for their program. Maybe not a Manning or Tee Martin but good. He is a fool not to consider and steal 2.5 million whether he makes it or not.
I have gotten fan mail for Casey Kelly it could be becaus, I am Pat Kellys, sister. My brother played for the Yankees and my name is Casey I would really like to know where to send it. The poor guy is asking for an autograph, So if I could please get a response as to where I should send this letter in the right direction. I will not sign it and make the poor guy think it is authentic autograph from the Red Sox player that would just be REALLY REALLY WRONG!
When the Red Sox drafted him do you really think they had a pick they thought would be ready from the get-go?! Heck no! They didn't think he'd pick up a wood bat and hit 50 homeruns with a .390 batting average. They saw his projectability and wanted to invest in creating a potential allstar. Without exaggeration i have probably seen this kid on the diamond 100 times and on the gridiron 15-20 times. he is far batter at baseball than at football. Letting the money "swell his helmet", wont happen bc his dad has seen it all and wouldn't allow that to happen. His dads experieince will accelerate Caseys progress in adjusting to the lifestyle. In the skills dept. he has it all: his arm strength is tremendous, has great control of all his pitches, knows how to mix it up, and has plus changeup curveball and fastball with movement. From the plate he has power to all fields but does need to improve contact. He doesnt have Ellsbury speed, but he has great baseball smarts and can steal bases getting great jumps. He has a plus glove and decent range. Id like to see him in CF. Hes a big kid with alot of room to get bigger faster and stronger. He'll b a household name and an every year allstar in bout 6 years and has a great head on his shoulders which will allow him to fit in with the teams chemistry.
lol... my name is casey kelly and i do everythiing like tat guy and my favorite baseball team is the red sox!!!!!!!
This blogger might want to review your comment before posting it.
Red Sox Twitter
E-mail your question
browse this blog
by categoryINside Boston.com