Fort Worth's MLB Draft Pick History
A data look at Fort Worth and the DFW Metroplex's historical MBL Draft picks.
Major League Baseball will hold its 2024 Draft on July 14th at the Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth, Texas. The selection event is one of several baseball activities taking place in the Dallas-Forth Worth Metroplex as a part of the mid-season All-Star break.
MLB teams, players and fans are descending upon the region at a time when baseball is at arguably peak, local popularity. The Texas Rangers clinched their first World Series title in 2023, finishing 90-72 (0.556) overall.
The Metroplex and Fort Worth’s connections to baseball and the MLB run much deeper, though. Those coming in for the Draft will enjoy the festivities in one of Fort Worth’s most iconic communities: the Stockyards. They’ll have the opportunity to learn a lot about Fort Worth’s history as well as explore western culture’s past, present and future. This article is intended to supplement that with some additional context about Fort Worth’s local connections with baseball and the Draft.
High-Level Summary
Between 1965 and 2023, there have been 996 MLB draft picks taken from the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. If we drill down to Fort Worth “proper”, there have been 277 players drafted during that time period. That translates to around 28% of the region’s total, historical picks.
Detailed Stats
Position and Top MLB Destinations
Of the 277 historical picks from Fort Worth, 51% were pitchers (with righties accounting for the bulk of that group). Sixty-five (23%) of picks were infielders, 16% were outfielders and 9% were catchers.
MLB Draft picks rarely embark on a straightforward path after being selected, especially when compared with the experiences of draftees from other professional sports leagues like the NFL. But in terms of the original teams that have picked Fort Worth players, there are seven franchises that stand out. The home team, Texas Rangers, have directly drafted at least 22 Fort Worth players between 1965 and 2023. The Baltimore Orioles and Cincinnati Reds are in the same neighborhood, with 21 and 20 Fort Worth picks, respectively. The MLB franchise to the southeast, Houston Astros, have drafted at least 14 Fort Worth players and the Red Sox, Indians and Brewers have drafted 13 players a piece.
Paths Taken to Draft Day
There are three main paths that players take in order to get selected in the MLB Draft: University, Junior College, and High School. Most picks from the Metroplex arrive on Draft Day having taken either the University or High School paths. For the overall region, the split is close to 50-50 but if you focus on Fort Worth, the University path is dominant. Forty-nine percent of historical Metroplex picks followed the University path compared with 80% of Fort Worth picks.
University Path Details
Texas Christian University (TCU) has produced the most University path MLB picks from Fort Worth. There have been 179 (81%) picks from TCU and the program’s production significantly began ramping up in the mid 2000s.
Texas Wesleyan University has produced 42 MLB Draft picks between 1965 and 2023. Their first pick was taken in 1972 and their most recent was drafted in 2018. The 1980s was one of the most prolific periods for the program in terms of sending players to the pros.
High School Path Details
There have been 54 MLB Draft picks from Fort Worth high schools. Arlington Heights and Eastern Hills high schools have been the most fertile training grounds. There have been 13 picks from Arlington Heights and 11 picks from Eastern Hills.
Final Thoughts
This is only a 30,000 foot view of Forth Worth and the larger Metroplex’s history with the MLB and Draft. If you’re local to the area or just in town for All-Star, I hope you get a chance to enjoy the activities and learn some more the region’s baseball connections.