Tyler Frank

Baseball player
Tyler Frank
Frank in 2019 with the Charlotte Stone Crabs
Second baseman
Born: (1997-01-15) January 15, 1997 (age 27)
Tamarac, Florida
Bats: Left
Throws: Right

Tyler Joseph Frank (born January 15, 1997) is an American former professional baseball shortstop.

Career

Frank graduated from American Heritage School in Delray Beach, Florida. As a senior in 2015, he batted .448 and was named to the Class 4A All-State Team.[1] He was not drafted out of high school in the 2015 Major League Baseball draft and he enrolled at Florida Atlantic University to play college baseball for the Owls.

As a freshman at FAU in 2016, Frank batted .285 with one home run, 27 RBIs, and a .401 on-base percentage in 45 games, earning him a spot on the Conference USA All-Freshman Team.[2][3] In 2017, as a sophomore, Frank started all 57 of FAU's games and batted .336 with 11 home runs, 43 RBIs, and 41 walks.[4] He was named to the All-Conference USA First Team.[5] That summer, he played for USA Baseball's Collegiate National Team, making him the first ever FAU player to be named to the team.[6] He also played collegiate summer baseball with the Hyannis Harbor Hawks of the Cape Cod Baseball League in 2017.[7][8] In 2018, his junior year, Frank hit .300 with 13 home runs and 35 RBIs in 63 games and was once again named to the All-Conference USA First Team along with being named the Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year.[9][10]

After his junior year, Frank was selected in the second round (56th overall) by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 2018 Major League Baseball draft and he signed for $997,500.[11][12] He made his professional debut for the Hudson Valley Renegades of the Class A Short Season New York-Penn League, with whom he was named an All-Star, and spent the whole season there, slashing .288/.425/.412 with two home runs and 22 RBIs in 51 games.[13][14] Frank began 2019 with the Charlotte Stone Crabs of the Class A-Advanced Florida State League but appeared in only 16 games due to an arm injury.[15] He did not play a minor league game in 2020 since the season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and missed all of the 2021 season due to a shoulder injury.[16][17] He missed the beginning of the 2022 season, but returned to play in mid-May with the Montgomery Biscuits of the Double-A Southern League after missing nearly three full seasons due to shoulder surgeries and switching from a right-handed batter to left-handed.[18] He was demoted to the Bowling Green Hot Rods of the High-A South Atlantic League in early August but was later assigned back to Montgomery. Over 67 games between the two teams, he hit .216 with two home runs and 26 RBIs.[19]

On March 29, 2023, Frank retired from professional baseball.[20]

References

  1. ^ "Former American Heritage shortstop Tyler Frank embracing stardom, pressure at FAU". FAU Focus. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  2. ^ "College Baseball Countdown: 36 Days to Go- Tyler Frank". College Baseball Central. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  3. ^ "2018 CBD TOP 100 COUNTDOWN: 48. TYLER FRANK (FLORIDA ATLANTIC)". College Baseball Daily. December 13, 2017. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  4. ^ "Tyler Frank develops into a draft prospect at FAU". The 3rd Man In. May 14, 2018. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  5. ^ "USM lands seven on All-Conference USA Baseball team". wtok.com. May 24, 2017. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  6. ^ "Tyler Frank becomes first Owl to make USA's Collegiate National Team". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  7. ^ "#14 Tyler Frank". pointstreak.com. Retrieved July 28, 2023.
  8. ^ "2017 Cape Cod League Top Prospects 31-50". Baseball America. Retrieved July 4, 2019.
  9. ^ "Florida Atlantic knocks La. Tech out of C-USA Tournament". Shreveport Times. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  10. ^ "FAU shortstop Tyler Frank named Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved May 30, 2018.
  11. ^ "Florida Atlantic shortstop Tyler Frank drafted No. 56 overall by Tampa Bay Rays | FAU Focus". Archived from the original on April 8, 2019. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  12. ^ "Amateur Draft Signings: 6/13/18". MLB Trade Rumors.
  13. ^ "First-place Renegades place 5 in Tuesday's All-Star Game". Poughkeepsie Journal.
  14. ^ "Tyler Frank Stats, Highlights, Bio - MiLB.com Stats - The Official Site of Minor League Baseball". MiLB.com. Retrieved September 11, 2018.
  15. ^ "Tampa Bay Rays: Where all Top-30 prospects will start the season". Fansided. April 2, 2019. Retrieved April 8, 2019.
  16. ^ "2020 Minor League Baseball season canceled". MLB.com.
  17. ^ "2021 Minor League Rule 5 Draft Preview".
  18. ^ "How 'the KK play' will go down in Tampa Spartans lore".
  19. ^ "Tyler Frank Stats, Fantasy & News".
  20. ^ https://twitter.com/tombaseball29/status/1641110732032073731

External links

  • Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference (Minors)