A day after Tampa Bay selected Baylor’s Cooper Kinney, the Rays followed that up by picking former Lee University ace Logan Workman. The seventh round pick (221st overall) went 13-1 over the last two seasons and had an eye-popping 1.21 ERA with 110 strikeouts in only 79.2 innings.
The pitcher hailing from Soddy Daisy was a driving force behind the Flames going to their first-ever NCAA South appearance after winning the Gulf South championship in 2021.
He becomes the 32nd Flame to be drafted or sign with an MLB team.
"I am extremely excited for Logan. I've had a front row seat in his development as a pitcher over the past four years from a hard throwing bullpen guy as a freshman to a pitcher who can command three pitches and ascended to the top ranked NCAA Division II prospect," said Lee head coach Mark Brew in a press release. "He will be a great fit for a Rays organization that has a history of developing quality young arms."
A few hours before, another Soddy Daisy and Chattanooga Christian School product heard his name called by an American League club. Kentucky outfielder John Rhodes was picked with the 76th overall selection by the Baltimore Orioles. The 2020 co-Freshman of the Year batted .294 over two seasons, garnering 73 hits and 30 walks, hitting 12 home runs and blasting 25 doubles in only 69 games.
Vanderbilt, Memphis, MTSU, and Tennessee have both had several players selected in the first 10 rounds of the draft. After star pitchers Jack Leiter (2) and Kumar Rocker (10) went off the board early, Memphis catcher Hunter Goodman (87), Tennessee’s ace Chad Dallas (121), and MTSU pitcher Aaron Brown (268) all are headed to MLB organizations.