Report: Marlins Nearing Deal with First Round Pick Tyler Kolek

The Marlins are close to reaching a deal with this year’s number two overall pick in the Draft Tyler Kolek, the hard throwing righty from Shepherd, Texas. Joe Frisaro reported this morning that, while a deal is close to being finalized, there has been no indication given about how long or how much the deal will be worth.

Kolek, who set a record for high school pitchers with his 102mph fastball, had previously committed to Texas Christian University for the upcoming year. However, Scouting Director Stan Meek believes that Kolek will rise though the Marlins’ farm system very quickly and that the 18 year old’s Major League debut is not far off. The 6′-5″ 250-pound righty drew comparisons to Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens by Meek and other Big League scouts.

During his senior season at Shepherd High School, Kolek pitched in ten games, earning himself a 5-2 record and posting an incredible 0.35 ERA. In the 60.1 innings he pitched last season, Kolek allowed just 23 hits and fanned 126 batters. In addition to his outstanding ability on the mound, Kolek batted .313 on the year with two homers and 16 RBIs in 67 at bats.

While no details of his potential contract have been released, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro mentioned that the slot value for the number two overall pick is roughly $6.8 million. It is yet to be seen if Kolek will sign for that much, but for a kid who just finished his last year of high school, we should expect to see him in the Marlins rotation sooner than later.