The Pittsburgh Pirates today announced they have signed right-handed pitcher Shane Baz, the 12th overall selection in the 2017 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.
The announcement was made by Executive Vice President and General Manager Neal Huntington and Pirates Director of Amateur Scouting Joe DelliCarri.
Baz (pronounced bozz), attended Concordia Lutheran High School in Tomball, TX, where he was named a firstteam all-district in 2017 while going 6-2 with a 0.93 ERA and 96 strikeouts.
Baz was tabbed by Baseball America as having the second-best fastball among high school pitchers in this year's draft along with being the 11th-best prospect available overall. The 17-year-old Baz, who will turn 18 tomorrow, also earned 2017 Rawlings-Perfect Game First-Team AllAmerican honors as well as Texas All-Region First-Team accolades.
"It is a very exciting time as we welcome Shane into our Pirates family today," said DelliCarri. "Shane's foundation as a young man and his strong pitching abilities will serve him very well in working with our player development staff for years to come." Baz, who was signed by Pirates Area Scouting Supervisor Wayne Mathis, will begin his professional career with the Gulf Coast League Pirates.