The Crazy Path Of Cincinnati Reds OF T.J. Friedl
The ballad of Cincinnati Reds prospect T.J. Friedl could make for an interesting baseball documentary someday!
Every summer in late May/early June, teams begin to call in all of their major amateur scouts to their team offices. After a few weeks of (typically) heated discussion, a draft board is sorted out for the June amateur draft.
That draft includes all players who have completed high school studies (or will be completing them in the active school year) and college players who meet eligibility requirements. College seniors and juniors are certainly eligible, but the tricky spot is when you have a redshirt sophomore that is eligible for the draft. Sometimes a scout will see “sophomore” on the team roster and pass over if it’s not indicated by the school that, in fact, the student-athlete is a redshirt sophomore.
The first redshirt sophomore drafted in this year’s June draft was Brett Cumberland, a catcher from the University of California, taken in the second competitive balance round, pick #76 overall, by the Atlanta Braves. Overall, four redshirt sophomores were drafted in the first 5 rounds of the draft.
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In July, rumors started going around that there was an undrafted redshirt sophomore that would have been an early pick had teams known he was eligible. Jonathan Mayo mentioned this first on the MLB Pipeline podcast, without mentioning the team who was attempting to sign the player or who the player was due to it being past the draft signing deadline, and most teams having spent their draft allotment, which would have to be used in order to sign the player. In late July, it was Mayo who first revealed the player and the team, T.J. Friedl, and signing with the Cincinnati Reds.
Friedl had been an outfielder with the University of Nevada-Reno and was coming off a season that would have made scouts take notice, hitting .401/.494/.563 with 21 extra base hits and 13 steals in 222 at bats. He was in the midst of playing with Team USA over the summer (and hitting well there – .290/.329/.536), and he discussed his surprise to find out about his eligibility on the “Show Before The Show” podcast (open the link to listen to the full interview). The Reds had the largest bonus pool of any team in the draft this season and with the amount they could go over their pool without facing a penalty, they were able to give Friedl a bonus that would have been equivalent to a mid-third round selection.
So what does a guy do who has been playing baseball all spring and summer? Take a break? Hardly. He officially signed on the 28th of July and made his season debut with Billings in advanced rookie Pioneer League. His first time to the plate, Friedl hit a home run! In the 3rd inning, Friedl was hit by a pitch. His third time to the plate, he hit ANOTHER home run! With the pressure building up, Friedl disappointingly hit a single in his last at bat to end his first day as a professional going 3-3 with 2 solo home runs. Pretty solid day!
Friedl finished the year with a .347/.423/.545 line with 3 home runs and 7 stolen bases in 29 games and 121 at bats. He admitted in a late-season interview that he was running on fumes after playing nearly non-stop since February.
A small, stout outfielder (5’10, 170 pounds), Friedl’s power was impressive in his pro debut, and definitely was not something scouts projected. He’ll likely end up a guy who has excellent leadoff skills offensively and profiles as an average to below-average center fielder or an above average left fielder.
Next: Short Season Top Prospects
Some video on Friedl: