After selecting two prep hitters on successive days, the White Sox drafted a college right hander with the 94th overall pick in the third round. Sean Burke of Maryland was the #75 overall player in the class according to MLB Pipeline and #53 at Baseball America.
The 21-year-old right hander went undrafted out of a Maryland high school 2018 after starring in baseball and basketball as a prep star. The 6’6″ 230 pounder underwent Tommy John surgery shortly after joining the Terrapins and he missed the 2019 season. Burke went on to become the Sunday starter in the B1G Conference for the 2020 season. In 2020, the right hander made four starts and threw 22.2 innings with 35 strikeouts and 11 walks. He posted a 1.99 ERA and allowed a .183 batting average against. This year while pitching mostly on Fridays, Burke posted a 3.27 ERA in 74.1 innings while piling up 107 strikeouts and 42 walks over that span.
The scouting report at MLB Pipeline notes that Burke has “one of the best overall fastballs in the class with velocity and movement”. His fastball sits in the 92-95 mph range but he’s gotten it up to 97-98 at times this year. The four seamer gets “serious ride up in the zone” and routinely misses bats. The issue with Burke’s stuff is that the secondary offerings are inconsistent. The big righty has thrown a knuckle-curveball that has shape and depth and rates as a 55-grade offering. He also has a 55-grade slider that flashes plus and it’s been used as a primary breaking pitch at times. There’s a present changeup that charts as a 45-grade offering but it shows arm side fade. The changeup just doesn’t get thrown that often.
Carlos Collazo of Baseball America ranked the Maryland starter as the #53 overall player in the draft class. The delivery shows very little effort and the publication lauded his stuff while noting that the walks have really hurt him. Command has been the issue for Burke but his 60-grade fastball is overwhelming at times. He profiles as a mid-rotation starter if everything goes right but he could have a future as a weapon in a big league bullpen with his two pitch mix if the secondaries don’t get straightened out in longer stints.
Some highlights from regionals
The White Sox were linked pretty heavily to the 21-year-old right hander this spring. He has some stuff to clean up but he’ll be helped by the organization’s pitching infrastructure. He throws high nineties heat with two solid breaking balls and the four seamer should play up even more once he gets into the system. He likely gets a tune up in the Arizona Complex League but he should pitch in A ball in 2022.
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