THEY EARNED IT
7/16/2025 10:32:00 PM | Baseball
Craig, Kemp drafted because of ‘old-school development’
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Before the 2025 season, Baylor baseball's Gabe Craig and Tyriq Kemp weren't even on the radar for the majority of Major League Baseball scouts, much less projected as selections for the first six rounds of this week's MLB Draft.
But in the words of noted actor and occasional pitchman John Houseman, "They earned it."
In Monday's second day of the 20-round draft, Craig was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies in the fifth round with the 161st overall pick, while Kemp went one round later to the Kansas City Royals with the 188th pick.
"Let's be honest, neither one of these guys were probably considered like that at the beginning of the season," said Baylor baseball coach Mitch Thompson. "This is truly an old-school development type deal where these guys had really nice ability to start with. We knew that when we recruited them, and they just continued to get better.
"This is kids believing in their coaches and in their program, and coaches believing in the players, and it coming together. It's a fun thing to see."
Monday was a fun day for Craig and Kemp as they became Baylor's 155th and 156th players to be drafted all-time and the second and third under Thompson's tutelage.
"It was a crazy experience," said Kemp, a first-team All-Big 12 pick at shortstop who hit .358 with a career-high seven homers, 41 RBIs and 48 runs scored. "But when my name got called, that feeling, I think that was the best day of my life. It was something I dreamed of, and I couldn't feel my body, it was crazy. I've never had that feeling, but it was so fun."
A native of The Netherlands, Kemp transferred to Baylor from Western Oklahoma State College, where he hit .394 and .375 in his first two collegiate seasons. But he struggled mightily in 2024, hitting at the bottom of the lineup most of the year and finishing at .238 only after a strong finish.
"That was really the first time I had struggled in baseball," Kemp said. "When I went back home, I had a national tournament with some ex-big league guys. I was playing with them, and I had a good tournament, and I was like, 'Hey, if I can do it here, I can do it at Baylor.' That turned around my confidence again, reset myself, and I came back and felt like myself again."
Always a defensive wizard, Kemp put himself in position to be drafted by leading the Bears in hitting (.358) and flexing his power with a .542 slugging percentage with 14 doubles, one triple and seven homers.
"The plays that we saw Tyriq make here this year may have never been made here at Baylor before, at shortstop," Thompson said. "The plays that we saw him make were as good as anybody in the country can make. And there are plays that you see the big leaguers make. . . . (The Royals) knew who he was to start with. And this year, when he started hitting, they could truly believe that he could be a big-league prospect."
Kemp has known Nick Leto, Kansas City's Director of Minor League Operations, since he was 10 years old. But it certainly didn't hurt, either, that Thompson put in a good word with a Royals organization that he spent a year with as an area scout after his previous stint as a Baylor assistant coach.
"When you've been in the game as long as I have, you've got a lot of friends and people that you've dealt with," Thompson said. "I've got definite connections there. And I'll say this, the Kansas City people are first-class people."
"Blessed to be a part of the Royals," Kemp said, "it still doesn't feel real, to be honest."
"I'm just happy for this opportunity," he said. "Being from The Netherlands, we came from a long way. But we made it happen."
Geographically, Craig didn't have to come nearly as far, hailing from Tyler, Texas, and playing two of his first three seasons at Tyler Junior College. But his path to the pros has been somewhat unconventional, including a year at Texas A&M when he threw just 2.1 innings in four relief appearances and had a 7.71 ERA.
Even in his first two seasons at Baylor, the 6-foot-5 right-hander had a modest 5.04 ERA with 34 strikeouts and 18 walks in 34 relief appearances covering 25 innings. But under the tutelage of first-year pitching coach Sean Snedeker, Craig developed into one of the nation's most dominant closers with a microscopic 0.59 ERA, a nation-leading 0.50 WHIP and a 17:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio, fanning 51 batters while walking just three in 32.0 innings.
"You have to have that belief and confidence internally as a player," he said, "because you're going to go through a lot of ups and downs in this game. I always had that belief and talent, but I knew it was going to take a lot of work to get there. . . . To go out there and be healthy and pitch a bunch and reinforce that belief that I already had, that was really cool."
Turning 24 just 10 days before the draft, Craig was one of the oldest players in the draft as a sixth-year senior, which could create more of a sense of urgency with the Phillies' organization and Craig himself.
"Being in my situation, I'm definitely going to be a guy that's going to be pushed a little more quicker and put in those situations," he said. "I see it as a benefit, because I have a ton of experience, I've learned a ton, and where I'm at mentally, physically . . . I'm ready, obviously, to go out there and pitch and keep doing what I've been doing. At the end of the day, it's still the same game."
Baylor Bear Insider
Before the 2025 season, Baylor baseball's Gabe Craig and Tyriq Kemp weren't even on the radar for the majority of Major League Baseball scouts, much less projected as selections for the first six rounds of this week's MLB Draft.
But in the words of noted actor and occasional pitchman John Houseman, "They earned it."
In Monday's second day of the 20-round draft, Craig was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies in the fifth round with the 161st overall pick, while Kemp went one round later to the Kansas City Royals with the 188th pick.
"Let's be honest, neither one of these guys were probably considered like that at the beginning of the season," said Baylor baseball coach Mitch Thompson. "This is truly an old-school development type deal where these guys had really nice ability to start with. We knew that when we recruited them, and they just continued to get better.
"This is kids believing in their coaches and in their program, and coaches believing in the players, and it coming together. It's a fun thing to see."
Monday was a fun day for Craig and Kemp as they became Baylor's 155th and 156th players to be drafted all-time and the second and third under Thompson's tutelage.
"It was a crazy experience," said Kemp, a first-team All-Big 12 pick at shortstop who hit .358 with a career-high seven homers, 41 RBIs and 48 runs scored. "But when my name got called, that feeling, I think that was the best day of my life. It was something I dreamed of, and I couldn't feel my body, it was crazy. I've never had that feeling, but it was so fun."
A native of The Netherlands, Kemp transferred to Baylor from Western Oklahoma State College, where he hit .394 and .375 in his first two collegiate seasons. But he struggled mightily in 2024, hitting at the bottom of the lineup most of the year and finishing at .238 only after a strong finish.
"That was really the first time I had struggled in baseball," Kemp said. "When I went back home, I had a national tournament with some ex-big league guys. I was playing with them, and I had a good tournament, and I was like, 'Hey, if I can do it here, I can do it at Baylor.' That turned around my confidence again, reset myself, and I came back and felt like myself again."
Always a defensive wizard, Kemp put himself in position to be drafted by leading the Bears in hitting (.358) and flexing his power with a .542 slugging percentage with 14 doubles, one triple and seven homers.
"The plays that we saw Tyriq make here this year may have never been made here at Baylor before, at shortstop," Thompson said. "The plays that we saw him make were as good as anybody in the country can make. And there are plays that you see the big leaguers make. . . . (The Royals) knew who he was to start with. And this year, when he started hitting, they could truly believe that he could be a big-league prospect."
Kemp has known Nick Leto, Kansas City's Director of Minor League Operations, since he was 10 years old. But it certainly didn't hurt, either, that Thompson put in a good word with a Royals organization that he spent a year with as an area scout after his previous stint as a Baylor assistant coach.
"When you've been in the game as long as I have, you've got a lot of friends and people that you've dealt with," Thompson said. "I've got definite connections there. And I'll say this, the Kansas City people are first-class people."
"Blessed to be a part of the Royals," Kemp said, "it still doesn't feel real, to be honest."
"I'm just happy for this opportunity," he said. "Being from The Netherlands, we came from a long way. But we made it happen."
Geographically, Craig didn't have to come nearly as far, hailing from Tyler, Texas, and playing two of his first three seasons at Tyler Junior College. But his path to the pros has been somewhat unconventional, including a year at Texas A&M when he threw just 2.1 innings in four relief appearances and had a 7.71 ERA.
Even in his first two seasons at Baylor, the 6-foot-5 right-hander had a modest 5.04 ERA with 34 strikeouts and 18 walks in 34 relief appearances covering 25 innings. But under the tutelage of first-year pitching coach Sean Snedeker, Craig developed into one of the nation's most dominant closers with a microscopic 0.59 ERA, a nation-leading 0.50 WHIP and a 17:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio, fanning 51 batters while walking just three in 32.0 innings.
"You have to have that belief and confidence internally as a player," he said, "because you're going to go through a lot of ups and downs in this game. I always had that belief and talent, but I knew it was going to take a lot of work to get there. . . . To go out there and be healthy and pitch a bunch and reinforce that belief that I already had, that was really cool."
Turning 24 just 10 days before the draft, Craig was one of the oldest players in the draft as a sixth-year senior, which could create more of a sense of urgency with the Phillies' organization and Craig himself.
"Being in my situation, I'm definitely going to be a guy that's going to be pushed a little more quicker and put in those situations," he said. "I see it as a benefit, because I have a ton of experience, I've learned a ton, and where I'm at mentally, physically . . . I'm ready, obviously, to go out there and pitch and keep doing what I've been doing. At the end of the day, it's still the same game."
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