University of Minnesota Athletics
Minnesota Twins Draft TJ Oakes in 41st Round
6/8/2011 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
University of Minnesota sophomore pitcher TJ Oakes (Jordan, Minn.) was drafted by the Minnesota Twins with the 27th pick in the 41st round (1,258th overall) of the Major League Baseball Draft on Wednesday afternoon.
Oakes, a 6-foot-5, 215-pound right-hander for the Gophers, was eligible to be drafted because he's within 45 days (July 15) of turning 21 years old. Oakes was a Third Team All-Big Ten selection this season after going 5-5 with a 3.26 earned run average. He made 14 appearances, all as a starter, striking out 52 batters in a team-high 85.2 innings pitched. He was Minnesota's Friday starter during Big Ten play, going 4-2 with a 3.40 ERA and a team-best 31 strikeouts in conference games.
As a freshman, Oakes was also named Third Team All-Big Ten and also earned a spot on the Big Ten All-Freshman Team. He was the first Golden Gopher freshman starting pitcher to receive All-Big Ten honors since Glen Perkins did so in 2003. Oakes appeared in 16 games, starting 14 of those contests, and went 4-3 with a 3.62 ERA and 57 strikeouts in 87.0 innings pitched.
Oakes is the son of current Gophers pitching coach Todd Oakes, who was drafted by the San Francisco Giants and played four years in the organization. In 1987, he moved into the coaching ranks and spent the next 12 years as a pitching coach at various levels of the organization.
TJ Oakes is the sixth Minnesota player drafted this year, and the second player taken by the Minnesota Twins. Justin Gominsky (Houston Astros, 11th Round), Nick O'Shea (Cincinnati Reds, 24th Round), AJ Pettersen (Minnesota Twins, 25th Round), and Scott Matyas (Detroit Tigers, 27th Round) were all selected on the draft's second day, while Austin Lubinsky (San Francisco Giants, 36th Round) was drafted earlier today.
