Cole Cates brings starter’s durability and strikeout upside to Middle Tennessee
Cates profiles as a workhorse right-hander with legitimate swing-and-miss ability: at Dyersburg State in 2024, he logged 85.2 innings with 77 strikeouts, and in 2025 he showed sharper bursts, including a five-inning shutout debut and a seven-strikeout outing. His value is in projecting as a competitive starter who can handle volume while missing bats, not just chasing weak contact. The main question is consistency, but the innings load, multi-inning track record, and flashes of high-end command make him a useful fit for a staff that needs stability and upside.[1]
