University of Tennessee Athletics
Simcox: 14th-Round Draft Pick by Detroit
June 10, 2015 | Baseball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Tennessee shortstop A.J. Simcox was selected by the Detroit Tigers with the 430th overall pick in the 14th round of the 2015 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.
Simcox appeared in 50 games during his junior season in 2015. He hit a career-best .293 with seven doubles, three triples, one homer, 27 RBI and 29 runs scored. After gaining momentum in the last half of the season, Simcox blasted his seventh double in a big series against Mississippi State, ultimately helping the Vols to their second-consecutive SEC Tournament appearance in May. Prior to the season, he was named a 2014 Preseason Top 50 Player by Baseball America and helped the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox to a Cape Cod Summer League Championship title.
As a sophomore in 2014, Simcox settled into the everyday role at shortstop for the Vols. He hit .270 amidst registering a season-long nine-game hit streak where he hit .410 from March 1-15 of that year. As a freshman, he appeared in 50 of 52 games, including 48 starts at shortstop, and led the team with 144 assists. His .327 batting average in SEC play was also tops among the Vols' squad in 2013.
In his first three seasons on Rocky Top, the Farragut native started all 150 games, having never missed a game over his sophomore and junior campaigns. He owns a .282 career average with 12 doubles, 66 RBI and holds a spot in the Vol Baseball record books for most sacrifice bunts in a career with 34. As a shortstop, Simcox holds a .942 lifetime fielding percentage.
Simcox was previously drafted by the Colorado Rockies in the 32nd round (987th overall) of the 2012 Major League Draft but did not sign.
