2021 top 10 right-handed pitching prospects

MLB Pipeline will unveil its Top 100 Prospects list for 2021 on Friday, January 29. Leading up to the release of the Top 100, we’ll take a look at baseball’s Top 10 prospects at each position. In the shortened 2020 season, many young poor were called upon to help pitchers. Six of

MLB Pipeline will unveil its Top 100 Prospects list for 2021 on Friday, January 29. Leading up to the release of the Top 100, we’ll take a look at baseball’s Top 10 prospects at each position.

In the shortened 2020 season, many young poor were called upon to help pitchers. Six of last year’s Top 10 righthanded pitchers got innings in the major leagues, although only one – Dustin May of the Dodgers – graduated from the prospect lists.

While a hopefully full 2021 season is lurking, you can expect more of the same. Seven of our new Top 10 should either continue to establish themselves in the big league rotations or make their debut this year, with some getting a chance to compete for the Rookie of the Year Award.

It’s a good split of high school students or signings (Sixto Sánchez, Ian Anderson, Luis Patiño, Matt Manning, Grayson Rodriguez) and college draftees (Nate Pearson, Casey Mize, Max Meyer, Emerson Hancock and Logan Gilbert), with Meyer and Hancock represent the 2020 Draft class.

The Top 10 Prospects (ETA)

1. Nate Pearson, Blue Jays (2021)
2. Casey Mize, Tigers (2021)
3. Sixto Sánchez, Marlins (2021)
Ian Anderson, Braves (2021)
Luis Patiño, Rays (2021)
6. Matt Manning, Tigers (2021)
7. Grayson Rodriguez, Orioles (2022)
8. Max Meyer, Marlins (2022)
9. Emerson Hancock, Mariners (2022)
10. Logan Gilbert, Mariners (2021)
Complete list “

Top Tools

Fastball: Pearson (80)
Even though he struggled a bit in the big leagues and missed time with a bendable load in his elbow, the fastball was still as impressive as ever. It averaged 96.3 mph and topped 101.5 mph during his time with Toronto, averaging an impressive 2300 rpm rotational speed on the four-seater.

Curveball: Manning (60)
Manning has the only plus curve in the Top 10, and it’s his out-pitch. It’s a true 12-to-6 hammer with hard down action and fast spin speeds.

Slider: Meyer (70)
Many felt that immediately after drawing, Meyer could get out big league-hitters with his slider. It was the best field of all arms in the 2020 Draft, an erasable breaking ball that hits 91 mph and adds and subtracts depth from.

Substitution: Sánchez, Rodriguez (65)
Sánchez threw his upper 80s transition more than any other field during his time in the big leagues in 2020, an unreachable offspeed field that dives to the plate and misses a ton of bats. Rodriguez’s change has now become his best secondary offering, thrown in the low 80s and consistently diving / running under the barrel.

Other field: Mize (70)
While his results in the big leagues were not optimal, Mize showed that his mid-80s splitter is still near top of the scale, with much better than the average vertical movement on the dive field.

Controls: Mize, Sánchez (60)
We’re willing to give Mize a mulligan about his control issues in the big leagues last year based on his track record of throwing attacks (1.4 BB / 9 in college and 1.9 BB / 9 in the small competitions). Sánchez’s athletic frame and repeatable performance helped him limit walks to 2.5 per nine in the major leagues last season, continuing a trend from the Minors, where he only walked 1.8 per nine in his career. .

Superlatives

Highest ceiling: Rodriguez
There are many candidates on this list to lay claim to this category, but Rodriguez’s size, material, pitching sense and age (he turns 21 for all of 2021) make it easy to imagine the first-rounder of 2018 will top this list in the future. .

Top floor: Mize
With three plus throws, an average curveball and a sinker, it’s hard to match Mize in terms of his repertoire and feel to throw it – again, despite his early struggles in the big leagues. That combination of things and command is the reason he was number 1 overall in 2018, after all.

Candidate for the Rookie of the Year Award: Anderson
Many on this list will see for quite some time in the big league in 2021, but none pitched as well as Anderson in a big league-debut in 2020. Especially considering his post-season, it is difficult not to set Anderson high on a National League ROY Award. candidate list.

Highest climber: Anderson
Anderson wasn’t in the Top 10 at this point a year ago, but a combination of 2020-list graduates and Anderson’s Atlanta performance catapulted him to No. 4.

Humblest Beginning: Sánchez
The Phillies almost accidentally found Sánchez and saw him when they scouted a Cuban catcher in the Dominican Republic in 2015. They signed the right-hander for just $ 35,000; he made his debut in the United States in 2016 and played in the major leagues with the Marlins at the age of 22.

Most to prove: Mize
While we’re giving him a mulligan, it’s still a bit concerning that Mize posted a 6.99 ERA over his seven big league starts in 2020 and was hit harder than anyone expected. This year offers a fresh start, but he will have to show that he can miss barrels more consistently.

Keep an eye: Quinn Priester, Pirates
While he hasn’t made an official pitch in 2020 like many other Minor League arms, few potential pitchers generate more buzz than the Pirates’ first round in ’19. The Illinois high school product pitched well when he joined the organization’s alternative training venue late in the summer and when the lights went out during the Florida educational league game, which some thought would be at or near the top of this one in a year’s time. list.