July 1, 2015

Notes from the Field

July 1, 2015

by BP Prospect Staff

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• Raimel Tapia (Rockies) still shows raw center-field defense. He took an inefficient route on a high fly ball to the gap and came up two steps short, leading to a double. Two plays later he botched a routine groundball single and amplified the mistake with a sloppy, hurried recovery and wide throw to allow an extra base. These were the same kinds of issues he had in April (and May), and the lack of discernible defensive growth over the course of the season is concerning. —Wilson Karaman

• Matt Purke (Nationals) displayed a three-quarters arm slot with average arm speed; delivery is much more rigid and stiff than I remembered from last season; still falling off the mound on delivery; FB sat 89-92 mph with mild arm-side run; pitch flattens out at the higher velocity band; SL hangs in the zone at 78-80 mph; well-below-average offering; 83-85 mph CH lacks any feel or fade and was telegraphed out of hand; I see an org arm at this point. —Tucker Blair

• Nick Plummer (Cardinals) looks like he has an advanced approach for a hitter right out of high school. So many of the kids in the Gulf Coast League are up there swinging at everything, but he already has a good understanding of the strike zone and of his role as a table-setter. He works the count well and puts together good at-bats. —Jeff Moore

• German Taveras (Red Sox) has a big arm from a three-quarters delivery; plus arm speed; hard drive with exertion but was able to repeat his delivery during my viewing; relief profile all the way and will have consistency issues; FB sat 92-95 mph and touched 96 mph; heavy arm-side run; flashed an average SL at 83 mph; command is well below average; envision an up-and-down relief arm. —Tucker Blair

• Nick Pivetta (Nationals) boasts a durable frame with a big body to hang innings on. He looked uncomfortable from the start of this outing. The arm swing was inconsistent, with the path to his release point repeatedly getting short and steep and leading to him leaving balls up and arm side. The fastball certainly had the ingredients, sitting 94-96 with moderate run and good plane from his high three-quarter release. He was undone by command, though, leaving a couple belt-high over the plate that hitters didn't miss. His curve flashed plus potential movement at 77-80 with 11-5 tilt and good depth, but an inconsistent release led to some hangers and yet more trouble. He also worked in a below-average, high-80's change that showed limited feel and inconsistent arm speed. —Wilson Karaman

• You'd never know that Terry Bennett (Marlins) was still just 17, but he's built like a much older player. He's already well-developed and quite strong. He also puts a great left-handed swing on the ball and shows some feel for the barrel. How he slipped to the 12th round is beyond me, but he's going to be a helium guy sometime in the next few years. Learn the name now. —Jeff Moore

• Rainy Lara (Mets) does nothing well; three fringe or worse offerings; FB sat 88-91 and lacks velocity, movement and command; SL lacked tightness and the release points were all over the place; completely telegraphs his 81-83 mph CH; long arm action; stiff delivery; no out pitch; one of those guys I am amazed made it this far; org arm. —Tucker Blair

• Sam Travis (Red Sox)—he of the recent promotion to Double-A—showed some athleticism and agility in his movement; he's not the slugging and base-clogging profile of first baseman. He was slow off the bag at first, though, with limited range on a couple chances. The approach at the plate was patient and geared toward opposite-field contact. He didn't look to drive pitches, and the swing plane took a flat path through the zone with limited separation or engagement of his hips. —Wilson Karaman

• Keury Mella's (Giants) fastball still looks the part of a legitimate big-league weapon, sitting mid-90's with explosive life. The change also showed marked improvement from an earlier season viewing, with solid tumble and double-digit velocity separation. I had concerns earlier in the year about the stress of his motion: The arm action is deep and he relied on plus arm speed to get him to his release on time. Coupled with a relatively short stride and some crossfire, the shoulder bore an awful lot of burden. He appears to have taken some steps to address this, with a more fluid drive and a notably cleaner arm action. —Wilson Karaman

• Duane Underwood (Cubs) paired a high-octane fastball that sat 94-97 with an enigmatic but definitely intriguing curveball at 79-80. His release of the pitch was inconsistent, with some offerings showing out of his hand and rolling, while others bit hard with a sharp 11-5 break and great finish down in the zone. The change at 87-88 lacked separation and came in flat. Unfortunately, Underwood exited his last start early and has been placed on the 7-Day DL with elbow soreness. —Wilson Karaman

Quick Hits: Orioles CF Cedric Mullins has plus speed, clocked 4.09 home to first, and displayed barrel control (TB) … Rays C Daniel De La Calle intrigued me with a few balls stung to the gap (TB) … Rays 1B/3B Hector Montes has the easiest swing I've seen in a while, but lacks the power or defensive profile for it to be relevant (TB) … Rays SS Willy Adames has the potential to be everything we thought Yunel Escobar was going to be all these years (JM).