We now transition from hitting to pitching where we can scout individual tools more easily but the complete package is often more difficult to put together. So we start with the most basic of pitches, the fastball. I break the fastball down into 4 components; velocity, command, movement, and deception of which each pitcher and pitch will combine to form a unique offering.  If a player cannot get their fastball in for strikes he is going to struggle to reach the majors, and if he cannot get weak contact or swings and misses in the strikezone, he is going to have a severely limited ceiling.  By mastering other parts of his fastball a player can marginalize weaknesses and amplify strengths. Continue reading Top Tools: Fastball →

Franco with another high placement on a list.  This time coming in behind Xander Bogaerts, Miguel Sano, and Noah Syndergaard.  He did place a head of two guys who are better prospects who were hurt by limited time in the league in Gregory Polanco and Anthony Rendon, but they are/were among the very elite prospects in the game.  He also placed ahead of 2010 #2 overall pick Jamison Tallion who has scouts split around whether he is a top of the rotation or mid rotation starter. Continue reading Maikel Franco #4 and Jesse Biddle #11 on BA’s Eastern League Top 20 →