Zack Thompson #57

Selected by the St. Louis Cardinals in the first round (No. 19 overall) of the 2019 MLB Draft out of the University of Kentucky... signed with the Cardinals on June 11, 2019 and received a $3 million signing bonus... was previously drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 11th round of the 2016 MLB Draft but did not sign... entered the 2019 Draft ranked by MLB.com as the No. 14 prospect in the Draft class... was ranked No. 11 by Baseball America, No. 18 by Fangraphs and No. 22 by ESPN... was a Golden Spikes Award Semifinalist and Dick Howser Trophy Semifinalist in 2019... was named a Rising Star in the Arizona Fall League in 2021... made his Cardinals debut with the Gulf Coast League Cardinals on June 28, 2019, striking out two in one inning vs. Miami... did not pitch in 2020 due to the MiLB season being cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic... made the jump to Triple-A in 2021 despite never pitching in Double-A, appearing in 22 games for Memphis, 19 as a starter... returned to Memphis to start the 2022 season where he was ranked by MLB.com as St. Louis' No. 9 prospect and No. 2 left-hander entering the season.

Thompson made 14 starts for Kentucky in 2019 and owned a 2.40 ERA with a 130-to-34 K/BB ratio over 90 innings as a junior for the Wildcats... finished second on the single-season strikeout list with 130 and surpassed Major League veteran James Paxton for the most in a season by a left-hander in school history... his 2.40 ERA is the eighth-lowest in a single-season and his 5.90 hits allowed per nine innings is the second-lowest... was nearly untouchable in SEC play (5-1, 2.27 ERA, 93 strikeouts and 44 hits allowed in 67.1 IP.).. ended the 2019 season ranked in the top 25 of all active pitchers with at least 75 innings in both strikeouts per nine innings (12.26, 18th nationally) and hits allowed per nine innings (6.09, 21st)... ranked 11th nationally in strikeouts per nine (13.00) and fifth in total strikeouts (130)... Thompson’s 268 career strikeouts make him the 14th UK pitcher to reach 200 and he’s fourth on the school’s all-time top 10.. currently (as of 2019) ranks second on the program’s all-time hits allowed per nine innings chart, third in career winning percentage and sixth in career ERA... in 19 career games vs. SEC opponents he was 6-1 with a 2.14 ERA and a save... struck out 122 and allowed just 54 hits in 88 1/3 innings... missed time in 2018 due to an elbow injury... pitched in nine games with seven starts in 2018 at UK, posting a 2-1 record in 31 innings… allowed 24 hits and struck out 42, good for a 12.19 K/9 innings rate… opponents hit just .212.. also in 2018, he played for the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team that went 12-3 overall in three series against Chinese Taipei, Japan and Cuba… made three appearances (one in each series) with one start and went 1-0 with an ERA of 0.00 in 8 2/3 innings... earned the win in series-clinching game of the 7th annual USA-Cuba International Friendship Series... pitched two games for the Brewster Whitecaps in the Cape Cod League before joining the Collegiate National Team, allowing two earned runs, five hits, three walks and striking out four in 5 2/3 innings... in 2017 at UK, he pitched in 20 games, starting 13 and went 8-3 with a 3.45 ERA in 75.2 innings, gave up 50 hits and struck out 96… was named First-Team Freshman All-American by Perfect Game/Rawlings… made his collegiate debut on 2/22/17 at Liberty, striking out eight in 4 2/3 innings… his first nine appearances were all starts before shifting into role as weekday starter and weekend reliever during SEC play... majored in communication at Kentucky.

Attended Wapahani (Indiana) High School where he owned a 0.98 ERA over 185 2/3 innings for his entire varsity career… owns a career record of 23-2, going undefeated on the mound over his sophomore (13-0) and junior (6-0) seasons… won the 2A State Championship as a sophomore… named First-Team All-State three consecutive years ranging from his sophomore to senior year… coached by Brian Dudley... ranked as the No. 23 left-handed pitcher and No. 134 overall player in the high school class of 2016 by PerfectGame.org

Son of Bill and Jan Thompson… born in Anderson, Indiana… has an older brother, Nick… member of the National Honor Society… told Kentucky his favorite MLB team was the Chicago Cubs

College career highlights:

• Perfect Game Second-Team All-America (2019)
• Collegiate Baseball Second-Team All-America (2019)
• Baseball America Third-Team All-America (2019)
• NCBWA Third-Team All-America (2019)
• ABCA/Rawlings All-Region (2019)
• Second-Team All-SEC (2019)
• Golden Spikes Award Semifinalist (2019)
• Dick Howser Trophy Semifinalist (2019)
• Perfect Game National Pitcher of the Week, April 1 (2019)
• NCBWA National Pitcher of the Week, April 1, (2019)
• SEC Pitcher of the Week, April 1 (2019)
• Collegiate Baseball National Players of Week, April 1 (2019)
• Baseball America Preseason First-Team All-America (2019)
• Coaches Preseason First-Team All-SEC (2019)
• Perfect Game Preseason All-SEC (2019)