2011 MLB Draft Re-visited: Cole, Fernandez or Gray?

1st overall: Gerrit Cole – PIT

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Cole is a burly, 6-foot-4, 230 pound mass of a man known colloquially as the ‘Cole Train’ to fans, journalists and bloggers. He was taken first overall by the Bucs a year after the club took another pitcher, Jameson Taillon, second overall immediately after the selection of Harper in 2010.

Taillon was a high school prospect, while Cole played NCAA baseball for the UCLA Bruins. Not surprisingly, Cole reached the Majors before Taillon, who is still awaiting his big league debut.

Losing a 2010 College World Series with the Bruins, the Pirates must have been firm on selecting a pitcher that year as they used a second overall pick on Pedro Alvarez in 2008, an 11th overall one on Andrew McCutchen in 2005 and an 11th again in 2004 on Neil Walker to establish a solid core of position players within their system.

Cole’s first two seasons showed gradual progression in both, but 2015 has been outstanding. He leads the Majors in wins with a 10-2 record, a 1.71 ERA and is tied for sixth in strikeouts with 93.  A pitching Triple Crown in the National League would make Pittsburgh fans very happy, but that may be wishful thinking at this point in Cole’s career.

Either way, the 24-year-old is emerging as one of the finer right-handers the game has to offer and already has a career WAR of 5.5 in less than 55 career starts. Cole has never gone under the knife (knock on wood) and has a solid core of position players supporting him in Pittsburgh right now to give him ample run support for years to come.

Next: Jose Fernandez