Baseball: TCU LHP Payton Tolle selected by Boston Red Sox in second round of 2024 MLB Draft

Sunday marked the beginning of the 2024 MLB Draft and TCU selected its first athlete late that night, with the Boston Red Sox taking left-handed pitcher Payton Tolle in the second round with the 50th overall selection. Tolle is coming off a stellar season at TCU, where the big left-handed pitcher went 7-4 with a 3.21 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP with 125 strikeouts and 37 walks in 81.1 innings pitched. The former Wichita State star started 14 games with the Horned Frogs during the 2024 campaign, holding opponents to a .198 average. Tolle was named Big 12 Pitcher and Newcomer of the Year this spring.

Tolle is the first Horned Frog selected in the 2024 MLB Draft. TCU saw seven athletes selected last year, including first-rounder Brayden Taylor (Tampa Bay Rays). Before transferring to TCU, Tolle began his college career at Wichita State, where he was an All-AAC First Team honoree and an All-American during the 2023 season. Tolle finished his lone season in Fort Worth as an All-American and an All-Big 12 First Team honoree. The Yukon, Oklahoma native finished his college career with a 4.09 ERA and a 20-13 record, along with 271 strikeouts and 78 walks in 42 appearances and 233.1 innings pitched.