Ole Miss softball’s Kaitlin Lee selected in National Pro Fastpitch Draft

Ole Miss senior right-hander Kaitlin Lee was taken in the fourth round of the National Pro Fastpitch draft by the Aussie Spirit on Monday. Lee became the second Rebel taken in the NPF draft, after outfielder RT Cantillo was taken in the fifth round by the Chicago Bandits back in 2014.

Despite spending only two seasons in Oxford after transferring from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, Lee is one of the best pitchers in program history. She threw every pitch of the Rebels’ run to an SEC Tournament title last season and threw three complete games in the Oxford regional, leading the team to its first-ever super regional. Then, she did everything she could in game one at No. 5 UCLA, throwing 191 pitches across 10.2 innings, but ultimately the Bruins were walk-off winners in the bottom of the 11th.

Lee holds six single-season program records, including wins, complete games, and shutouts, and has a 2.07 ERA during her time at Ole Miss.

Lee isn’t a power pitcher, so it will be interesting to see if she is able to continue to miss barrels at the professional level. She has only struck out 3.3 batters per seven innings in her Ole Miss career, but she has the ability to hit her spots and change speeds and doesn’t issue many free passes. She will probably strike out even fewer hitters than she does now, but she can continue to have success if she sticks to her formula: keep hitters off-balance, induce a lot of weak contact, and let her defense work for her.