Clemson senior pitcher Pat Krall was drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 28th round of the Major League Baseball Draft on Wednesday. Krall was selected 831st overall and was the fifth Tiger taken in the draft, joining Charlie Barnes (4th round, Twins), Chase Pinder (7th round, Cardinals), Alex Eubanks (14th round, Rangers), and Paul Campbell (21st round, Rays).
Krall was primarily a stopper for the Tigers out of the bullpen two seasons ago before being permanently moved into the rotation in 2017. In 90 innings pitched over 17 appearances (16 starts) this season, Krall amassed a record of 8-3 with a 3.50 earned run average. For his career, the two-time Second-Team All-ACC performer finished with a record of 21-9 over 230.1 innings. He also saved ten games at the collegiate level, including eight at Clemson.
The Athletics organization has one top left-handed pitching prospect in its system—A.J. Puk, its first round selection in last year’s draft. Besides Puk, the Athletics are void of true projectable lefty arms. Ironically, former Tiger hurler Daniel Gossett made his major league debut for the Athletics mere hours before the team drafted Krall.