Nate Pearson's Secondary Pitches Make Him Intriguing
4 years agoToronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Nate Pearson debuted last July to much fanfare, but he had a sky-high 16 percent walk rate and was among the worst starters in baseball at locating his pitches in 2020. The right-hander can hit triple digits on the radar gun and has a slider with good depth, a big loopy curveball and a high-80s changeup to go with his heater. Each of his secondary pitches had 30-plus percent whiff-per-swing rates, and he compares well to Jack Flaherty, Dinelson Lamet, Yu Darvish and Trevor Bauer based on velocity and movement of his offerings. The 24-year-old threw just 18 innings and battled elbow soreness, but there's no question that the stuff is there. Few young pitchers match Pearson's upside at an ADP of 261 in the later rounds of drafts.
Source: MLB.com - Matt Kelly
Source: MLB.com - Matt Kelly