He might not be the next Wade Boggs,but recent Plant High graduateKyle Tucker already has an early edge over the Tampa Hall of Famer and 1976 Plant grad. Boggs, an infielder, was a seventh round pick of the Boston Red Sox out of high school. Tucker, an outfielder, was a first round pick–and fifth overall–by the Houston Astros.
In fact, Tucker matched Dwight Gooden (Hillsborough High, 1982) as the highest-ever selection for a Tampa Bay area high school player–and that includes the likes of Gary Sheffield (Hillsborough), Tino Martinez (Jefferson) and Lou Piniella (Jesuit).
Moreover, Tucker wasn’t the only Panther taken in the first round–and that’s never happened before to a Tampa Bay area school. Pitcher Jake Woodford was taken 39th overall in the supplemental first round by the St. Louis Cardinals.
And by signing with Houston, Kyle Tucker will join the same franchise that signed his brother Preston, a Plant and University of Florida grad, in 2012. Preston Tucker is now a key contributor with the American League West-leading Astros.
And one final Tampa-Houston connection. That lights-out rookie Astros pitcher, Lance McCullers Jr., is a Jesuit High product.
Al Lopez would be proud.