Baseball in Fort Wayne

Taylor University and former Homestead standout, Taylor Kinzer was drafted by the Angels with the 741st pick, which was the final pick of round 24.

The ace of Taylor’s 2009 MCC Tournament championship team, Kinzer was a perfect 8-0 on the mound for the Trojans. This is the second time Kinzer has been selected in the MLB Draft.  In 2006 he was a 34th round pick of the Washington Nationals as an outfielder, but Kinzer chose to continue his education and he landed at Taylor in the fall of 2007.

“We are really excited for Taylor,” said Taylor head coach Kyle Gould. “This is a major accomplishment for him and a testament to the hard work that he put in over the past two years in becoming a great pitcher.  His efforts on the mound down the stretch were key to us winning a conference championship and advancing in the NAIA National tournament.  Taylor’s selection by the Angels demonstrates that playing baseball at Taylor can provide the opportunity and exposure to move on to professional baseball.”

Through two seasons at Taylor, Kinzer is 13-5 on the mound including his perfect record in 2009.  In 135 career innings pitched, he has walked only 28 batters while striking out 95. At the plate he has batted .316 each of the last two seasons to go along with 45 extra base hits in 351 at bats.

Major League Baseball allows draftees until August 17 to sign with their team. Kinzer would forego his final two years of eligibility at Taylor if he signs with the Angels.

Related BBIFW Posts:

• Kinzer Leads Taylor in Debut
• Local Ties: Area Standouts Lead Taylor University

Other Local Ties Notes:

St. Louis native, Josh Worrell - who is a student at Indiana Weslyan University – was selected by the Royals in the 30th round (902nd overall).

The TinCaps may soon have an almost local player. Carmel High School standout and current University of Michigan baseball player, Christopher Fetter was chosed by the Padres with the 264th overall pick in the 9th round.

Photo is courtesy of Taylor Univeristy and Don Rogers.

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