Tyler Kolek


Tyler Frank Kolek is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Miami Marlins organization. He was drafted by the Marlins in the first round of the 2014 Major League Baseball Draft.

High school career

Kolek attended Shepherd High School in Shepherd, Texas, and played for the school's baseball team. He missed most of his junior season, after breaking his arm in a collision with a baserunner. He signed a letter-of-intent with Texas Christian University in November 2013. Throughout the first three starts of his senior year, he had not given up a hit and had 35 strikeouts over 15 innings.

Professional career

With a fastball that had been clocked as high as, Kolek was considered to be among the top high school pitching prospects for the 2014 Major League Baseball Draft. The Miami Marlins selected Kolek in the first round, second overall, of the draft. He signed on June 16 and was assigned to the GCL Marlins, where he posted a 0-3 record with a 4.50 ERA in nine games. He spent 2015 with the Greensboro Grasshoppers where he went 4-10 with a 4.56 ERA, with a 1.56 WHIP in 25 games. On April 7, 2016, Kolek underwent Tommy John surgery, and had to sit out during the 2016 season. Kolek missed a majority of the 2017 season as well due to injury; he pitched in only three games for the GCL Marlins in which he gave up 12 earned runs in 3.2 innings.

Family

Kolek's brother, Stephen, also played for Shepherd's baseball team. He played college baseball for Texas A&M University and was drafted in the 11th round of the 2018 MLB Draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers.