Tennessee baseball's Tanner Franklin taken in second round by St. Louis Cardinals in 2025 MLB Draft

Tanner Franklin brought a high-powered fastball to Tennessee baseball and he’s bringing it to pro baseball next.

Franklin was picked in the second round as the No. 72 overall pick by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2025 MLB Draft on July 13. He was the seventh UT player picked and the second by the Cardinals, who selected pitcher Liam Doyle No. 5 in the first round.

The Jefferson City, Tennessee, native transferred to UT for his junior season, coming back to East Tennessee to pitch for the Vols. Franklin threw as hard as 102 mph at Tennessee, including against Oklahoma State in the Astros Foundation College Classic on Feb. 28.

Tennessee had a program-record four players picked in the first round.

Doyle got it started. Shortstop Gavin Kilen was chosen No. 13 by the San Francisco Giants. First baseman/third baseman Andrew Fischer was selected No. 20 by the Milwaukee Brewers. Pitcher Marcus Phillips was drafted No. 33 by the Boston Red Sox.

Pitcher AJ Russell was taken No. 52 by the Texas Rangers. Shortstop Dean Curley was plucked by the Cleveland Guardians with the No. 64 pick.

Tanner Franklin chosen by St. Louis Cardinals in second round MLB Draft

Franklin was 1-2 with a 4.89 ERA in 27 games with one start. He struck out 52 in 38⅔ innings with nine walks, drastically cutting down on his walk rate from his first two seasons at Kennesaw State while adding velocity.

He struck out three in 1⅓ innings in Tennessee’s 11-5 win against Wake Forest on June 2 to win the Knoxville Regional. He allowed one hit and walked one.

Tanner Franklin transferred to Tennessee from Kennesaw State

Franklin a 6.34 ERA in 34 games with three starts in two seasons at Kennesaw State before he transferred to UT. He struck out 61 in 38⅓ innings with 40 walks.

Franklin had a 5.60 ERA with a 4-1 record as a sophomore in 2024. He threw 27⅓ innings across 21 appearances, striking out 44 and walking 27. He had similar splits as a freshman with 18 strikeouts and 13 walks in 11 innings.

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on X @ByMikeWilson or Bluesky @bymikewilson.bsky.social. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tanner Franklin: Tennessee pitcher picked in second round by St. Louis Cardinals in 2025 MLB Draft

Tennessee baseball’s Tanner Franklin taken in second round by St. Louis Cardinals in 2025 MLB Draft

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