Braves select Vanderbilt ace Kyle Wright No. 5 overall

With the fifth pick in the 2017 MLB amateur draft, the Atlanta Braves selected right-hander Kyle Wright, the Vanderbilt ace bandied about as a potential No. 1 pick.

Undrafted out of high school on account of his unflappable commitment to Vanderbilt, Wright, one of the top amateurs in the country in 2014, has added size and strength in his three years in the Southeastern Conference, assuaging concerns over his durability while also adding a changeup to his repertoire to become the consensus top college right-hander available.

"I feel like mentally, I'm pretty well groomed," Wright said last month. "Growing up, my dad was my high school baseball coach so I’ve always had a little bit of a coach’s mind. The game never really gets to me. I feel like I’m able to make pitches when I need to. Even going into (college), that’s kind of stuck with me through big games I've had to pitch in."

Bio

Age: 21
Position: RHP
Height/weight: 6-foot-4, 220 pounds
Bats/Throws: R/R
School: Vanderbilt
NCAA commit: -
Pick value (#5): $5,707,300
MLB.com money quote: "Wright's stuff could continue to get better, because unlike most top college pitching prospects, he still has a good deal of projection remaining ... Wright will be a frontline starter if he can master the location of his pitches."

2017 stats

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