Reds sign No. 1 pick Stephenson

Published 2:56 am Monday, June 15, 2015

CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati Reds have signed No. 1 draft pick C Tyler Stephenson from Kennesaw Mountain High School in Marietta, Georgia.

The 6-foot-4, 220-pound Stephenson was taken with the 11th pick overall in Monday’s first-year player draft and will be assigned to the rookie Pioneer League’s Billings roster.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

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Stephenson, 18, was rated by Baseball America and MLB.com the best catcher in this year’s draft, the 15th-best prospect overall. This spring he hit .415 with 8 HR and 25 RBI for KMHS.

Stephenson is the fifth catcher taken by the Reds in the draft’s first round, joining Dan LaMar (20th pick in 1979), Dan Wilson (7th in 1990), Devin Mesoraco (15th in 2007) and Yasmani Grandal (12th in 2010).