KC Royals: Bad 2020 season would land one of two Vanderbilt pitchers

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Jack Leiter – Starting Pitcher (will be 21-years-old for June 2021 draft)

2020 (Freshman year – Vanderbilt University): 0.00 ERA, 0.500 WHIP, 16 Ks in 10.0 innings (thru February)

Jack Leiter is a 6’0”, 195 pound freshman starting pitcher who is forcing his way into the extraordinary weekend starting pitching rotation for reigning NCAA national champions Vanderbilt University.

Leiter is the son of 19-year, former MLB starter Al Leiter who won 162 games, two World Series titles (1993 Toronto Blue Jays and 1997 Florida Marlins), and generated 36.5 WAR in his career. Jack Leiter was one of the hardest to sign high school pitching prospects during the 2019 MLB amateur draft and fell to the 20th round when it was understood he couldn’t be bought out of his commitment to attend Vanderbilt University.

In his first start for the Vanderbilt Commodores, Leiter displayed the talent that excited scouts during his senior year in high school. In Leiter’s debut, he threw five no-hit innings, striking out 12 out of 16 batters faced. Leiter’s second start for Vanderbilt wasn’t much worse when he pitched five innings, allowing only one hit and striking out four.

Vanderbilt’s weekend pitching rotation is already loaded with Kumar Rocker headlining the group, but Leiter’s talent is pushing Vanderbilt’s coaching staff to promote him into a more prominent role moving forward in the season. There’s no doubt we will see more of Leiter as Vanderbilt is built to make another NCAA championship run.

Scouting Report (according to fangraphs.com):

Fastball: 55 Curveball: 60 Slider: not graded Change-up: 50 Command: 50 Overall: 50

Leiter has the talent to command four potential above-average pitches, with a plus-plus curveball, above-average fastball, and above-average slider leading the way. His fastball tops out around 98-mph, typically sitting around 91-94 mph with high RPMs allowing him to be very effective elevating in the zone.

His curveball is absolutely nasty and has plus-plus potential with his favorable spin axis and dramatic vertical movement. He throws an above-average slider around 85-mph that has plus potential with horizonal/vertical movement. His change-up figures to be an average offering (downward movement) and could be something more once he finds more confidence in the pitch.

His command can be inconsistent at this point in his development, as Leiter has a controlled, full-body delivery with a cross body release. Leiter is very athletic and he’ll continue to develop better command over time, but the delivery takes a lot of effort.

Leiter has more projectable potential as starter with the potential of being a future Ace type pitcher if he develops a consistent change-up. His mechanics require a great deal of athleticism and as long as he continues his physical maturation, he should be able to achieve his potential.

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His cross-body release and full-body delivery could cause Leiter to lose effectiveness later in his career once he gets into his 30s, but he could be a dominate pitcher in his 20s. He reminds me a lot of former Vanderbilt pitching star and current Cincinnati Red pitcher Sonny Gray, who possesses some of the best spin (RPMs) in the MLB.

Leiter is a very exciting prospect, as he’s able to spin some of the nastiest breaking balls in the NCAA. If he shows consistent command and endurance to sustain his velocity, he could dominant his fellow NCAA competition.

He will be age eligible for the 2021 amateur draft (due to age) and is likely to have a great deal of negotiating leverage. Leiter went to school for a reason and money doesn’t seem to be a driving force for him. There’s a chance Leiter stays in school for another year if he doesn’t like his draft destination in 2021.

Leiter is only going to go to where he wants to go professionally (he’ll have the leverage to do so) and has the family pedigree and athletic ability to the number one overall selection in the 2021 draft or the 2022 draft.

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