Red Raiders in the MLB: 2020 Draft Recap

In a condensed version of the MLB Draft, Red Raider Nation was sure to hear some of our very own being taken. Here’s how it all went down:

The first Red Raider off the board was right-hander Clayton Beeter, to the Los Angeles Dodgers with the 66th overall pick. Beeter was electric in 2020, with an ERA of 2.14 with 33 strikeouts in what could have been a CWS National Championship run for Tech. Beeter also saw some action during his redshirt freshman season in 2019, primarily in relief with an ERA of 3.48, 40 strikeouts and 8 saves. Beeter finished his career in Lubbock with an ERA of 2.81 and 73 strikeouts against just 4 home runs.

The next Red Raider off the board was Bryce Bonnin, to the Cincinnati Reds with the 84th overall pick. Transferring to Tech from Arkansas going into the 2019 season, Bonnin came in and made a name for himself as the Sunday starter, and was a very essential part in the 2019 College World Series run. In 2020, Bonnin picked up where he left off in 2019 and was often seen as the series starter. Bonnin finished his short career with the Red Raiders with an ERA of 4.69 and 92 strikeouts in 19 total appearances.

Photo courtesy of Texas Tech Athletics

Because the Draft was cut short, we could’ve easily seen more Red Raiders come off the board, but unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. On June 18th, Kendall Rogers of D1 Baseball reported that second baseman Brian Klein has signed with defending World Series champion Washington Nationals as an undrafted free agent. Klein was incredible in his career in the Scarlet and Black, being a very important part of back-to-back College World Series runs. Klein possessed great fielding abilities, complimented by strong performances at the plate. Klein finished his career with the Red Raiders at the plate with a batting average of .318, 124 RBI’s, 10 home runs, a slugging percentage of .465 and an on-base percentage of .408. In the field, Klein finished with a fielding percentage of .990 with 298 assists, 209 putouts against 5 errors.

Photo courtesy of Texas Tech Athletics

On June 14, pitcher John McMillon signed a free agent contract of his own with the Kansas City Royals. Red Raider Nation rejoiced when McMillon would be returning for his senior season, and he didn’t disappoint. Moving into the starting lineup after spending the first part of his career in Lubbock coming out of the bullpen, McMillon had an ERA of 3.86 with 20 strikeouts. McMillon proved to be a strong point in the rotation and was among the best pitchers in the country throughout his career. McMillon finished his career with the Red Raiders possessing an ERA of 3.41, 189 strikeouts and 8 saves in 72 appearances.