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Atlanta Braves select power pitchers Jake Higginbotham Nolan Kingham

By Fred Owens

SECAUCUS, NJ - JUNE 5: Representatives from all 30 Major League Baseball teams fill Studio 42 during the MLB First-Year Player Draft at the MLB Network Studio on June 5, 2014 in Secacucus, New Jersey. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
SECAUCUS, NJ - JUNE 5: Representatives from all 30 Major League Baseball teams fill Studio 42 during the MLB First-Year Player Draft at the MLB Network Studio on June 5, 2014 in Secacucus, New Jersey. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /
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Representatives from the Atlanta Braves and 29 other Major League Baseball teams fill Studio 42 during the MLB First-Year Player Draft at the MLB Network Studio in Secacucus, New Jersey.
Representatives from the Atlanta Braves and 29 other Major League Baseball teams fill Studio 42 during the MLB First-Year Player Draft at the MLB Network Studio in Secaucus, New Jersey. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

Atlanta Braves’ selections in rounds 11 and 12 are arms with outstanding potential but signing might be a problem.

Round 11 saw the Atlanta Braves select lefty Jake Higginbotham from Clemson. They continued the ranked pitching theme by taking Nolan Kingham, a RHP from Texas.

Both players ranked highly enough to go in earlier rounds and get higher bonus checks but fell to the Braves.

Both players are juniors with a year of eligibility left and don’t have to sign.

Both players have issues that caused them to drop in spite of their talent.

Jake Higginbotham 22-years-old 6-Foot 175-pound LHP from Buford Ga.

@jake_higg

BA Rank 305

Eight games into his freshman season Higginbotham suffered a stress fracture in his left elbow. The fracture required surgery and a rehab that lasted until the 2018 season.

Higginbotham made 15 starts for the Tigers this year, throwing 77 innings with a 3.27 ERA, 1.23 WHIP striking out 62 and walking 30. His Baseball America scouting report shows why he’s an interesting selection.

". . . 90-93 mph with his fastball and touching 94 mph with a loose arm . . . creates some deception with his delivery . . . (spins) an average, upper-70s breaking ball and serviceable, low-80s changeup . . . control is ahead of command. . . loses his release point and gets underneath the ball, creating some Jekyll and Hyde innings."

A lefty who touches 94 and spins a nice bender is always good to have around. He has a year of eligibility left so he could return to Clemson and hope for a better year with a bigger bonus.

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