Kyle Gibson

From BR Bullpen

Kyle Gibson

Bats Right, Throws Right
Height 6' 6", Weight 208 lb.

School University of Missouri
High School Greenfield Central High School

Born October 23, 1987 in Greenfield, IN USA

Kyle Gibson was picked in the first round of the 2009 amateur draft.

In high school, Gibson was 15-8 with a 1.19 ERA and hit .439; he made All-State as a senior. As a sophomore and junior in high school, he played ball at the Pittsburgh Pirates training camp in Bradenton, FL, facing off with college-level players. The Philadelphia Phillies took him in the 36th round of the 2006 amateur draft but he opted for college.

As a freshman, Gibson was a reliever on a Missouri team that featured Aaron Crow as its ace starter. Kyle went 8-3 with 7 saves and a 4.12 ERA, striking out 77 in 68 innings over 28 appearances. Crow was the only pitcher on the club with more wins or strikeouts. Kyle was 2-0 with a 1.17 ERA for the Falmouth Commodores of the 2007 Cape Cod League, finishing second to Crow in ERA. Baseball America rated him the #3 prospect in the circuit.

Gibson had a 9-4, 3.84 record with 2 saves in 2008, striking out 96 in 86 2/3 innings as the #2 starter behind Crow; Missouri finished 19th in NCAA Division I. Kyle was third in the Big 12 Conference in wins behind Crow and Tyler Lyons. He tied for third in the Conference in strikeouts, trailing Crow and Johnny Dorn.

Gibson spent the summer of 2008 with Team USA, going 5-0. He allowed only one hit and no runs in 5 1/3 innings in the 2008 Haarlem Baseball Week, going 2-0. He tied Mike Minor and Stephen Strasburg for the tournament lead in wins as the USA picked up a Gold Medal. In the 2008 World University Championship, Kyle was 2-0 with a 1.69 ERA and led the US with 5 appearances; one of his wins came in the Gold Medal game against Japan. He tied Kai-Wen Cheng, Shinji Iwata and Shingo Tatsumi for the tournament lead in victories.

Gibson kept up his fine work in 2009. With Crow gone, he became Missouri's ace and went 11-3 with a 3.21 ERA. He fanned 131 and walked 19 in 106 2/3 innings, tying Max Scherzer's school record for Ks in a season. Among the highlights was a 11-strikeout shutout win over the #1-ranked University of Texas. He finished among NCAA Division I's leaders in strikeouts.

For bad timing, Gibson was diagnosed with a stress fracture in his right arm on June 6, 3 days before the 2009 amateur draft. This lowered his stock from top-5 and he fell to 22nd overall before the Minnesota Twins chose him.

Gibson's repertoire includes a fastball in the low 90s, a slider and curveball.