Tennessee left fielder and leadoff man Seth Stephenson is officially off the board.
With the 207th overall pick in the seventh round of the 2022 Major League Baseball draft, the Detroit Tigers have selected Seth Stephenson from the University of Tennessee.
Stephenson is now the eighth MLB Draft selection from the University of Tennessee in 2022.
Rocky Top ➡️ Motor City 🏎️
Seth Stephenson gets taken in the 7th round by the @tigers! pic.twitter.com/4hFFJhkfc2
— Tennessee Baseball (@Vol_Baseball) July 18, 2022
MLB Draft: Tony Vitello Goes To Bat For Drew Gilbert On MLB Network Broadcast
Stephenson, Tennessee’s leadoff hitter and left fielder last season, was productive in his spot as arguably Tennessee’s fastest player. Stephenson was 25-of-30 in stolen base attempts this year, many of which came during crucial points of certain games.
The Buda, Texas native originally began his career at Temple College in Texas before transferring to Tennessee prior to the 2022 season. Stephenson originally played at Temple College for two seasons before deciding to transfer.
During his lone season in Knoxville, Stephenson finished the year with a .339 batting average, 62 hits, and 28 RBIs in just 59 games. Of those 59 appearances, Stephenson was in the Tennessee starting lineup for 46 of those.
Stephenson only recorded one defensive error throughout the entirety of the season and posted a .980 fielding percentage.
While Stephenson isn’t as well known for his power at the plate, the junior outfielder has more than enough game-changing speed and contact ability to make for an interesting draft selection for any team.
As mentioned previously, Stephenson is Tennessee’s eighth player off the board in the 2022 MLB Draft:
- Drew Gilbert, Round 1 Pick 28, Houston Astros
- Jordan Beck, Compensatory Round A Pick 38, Colorado Rockies
- Blade Tidwell, Round 2 Pick 52, New York Mets
- Trey Lipscomb, Round 3 Pick 84, Washington Nationals
- Ben Joyce, Round 3 Pick 89, Los Angeles Angels
- Will Mabrey, Round 6 Pick 168, Arizona Diamondbacks
- Jorel Ortega, Round 6 Pick 174, Minnesota Twins
- Seth Stephenson, Round 7 Pick 207, Detriot Tigers
- Mark McLaughlin, Round 7 Pick 221, Chicago White Sox
Mark McLaughlin is the ninth Tennessee player selected in the 2022 MLB Draft. It's the most Tennessee players ever selected in the MLB Draft.
It happened in seven-rounds. The MLB Draft was 40-rounds until two years ago.https://t.co/WHy8ypbJoP
— Ryan Schumpert (@rschump00) July 18, 2022
