It’s the point in the season where you see some of the pitching prospects in the game start to make their way to the majors. With that in mind, it’s time to do some deeper dives into a few that are making some buzz and some that were mentioned in this week’s MLB Podcast that is out now.
Jesús Luzardo , LHP OAK – Luzardo is one of the top left-handed pitching prospects in baseball and is expected to make his next start at Triple-A Las Vegas after making his first rehab start at High-A Stockton as he works back from a shoulder strain he sustained in spring training. Luzardo should be up fairly soon in the second half if all goes well at Triple-A. The fastball is the standout pitch for the southpaw as it sits in the mid-90s and touches 98 frequently with a lot of sink and command to both sides of the dish. That sink and command causes a lot of swings and misses or ground balls if contact is made and he backs that pitch up with a sinking, fading changeup that is thrown with great arm speed to match the fastball and add to the deception. The third pitch is a curveball that is now an above-average pitch with nice life from his high-three-quarters arm slot and one that he can add and subtract to and from as well. Those three pitches are more than enough to be a frontline starter with a career K-rate hovering around 30-percent as well. The A’s desperately need an ace-caliber arm in that rotation in Oakland and that’s just what Luzardo is in the making and one that should be up come the beginning of August.
A.J. Puk , LHP OAK – The second pitcher from Oakland to make the report this week, Puk is on the comeback trail as well as he comes back from Tommy John surgery last April. The former sixth overall pick in the draft out of the University of Florida, he is a behemoth on the mound at 6’7” and 238 pounds as he whips the ball out from the first base side of the rubber. Puk’s four-pitch mix is anchored by a 70-grade fastball that sits at 96-97, which is very good velocity from a lefty, and his slider isn’t far behind as a 65-grade pitch with devasting movement on it gotten from the frame and arm action used to deliver it. The changeup and curveball are both works in progress with the former better than the latter and ranking as an above-average MLB offering right now. Prior to the injury, he led the minors in 2017 with a 13.2 K/9 rate in 125 innings between High-A and Double-A while walking 3.45 batters per nine as well. He has been brought along slowly by Oakland this year as he has just two starts and four total innings pitched for High-A Stockton while he knocks the rust off. If he comes up in the second half, expect a likely opener role or a Jalen Beeks type long reliever for the A’s.
Adbert Alzolay , RHP CHC – The 24-year-old righty is the most advanced pitching prospects in the Cubs system and is having a great season at Triple-A Iowa that at this point with a 3.09 ERA and FIP in 32 innings. His 46:6 K:BB ratio stands out as his K-rate has reached a career-high this year at 36.5-percent even though he hasn’t added a pitch to his arsenal. Speaking of arsenal, he utilizes a 92-96 mph fastball with running life as the main pitch and then builds off that with a mid-80s curveball with tight bite and a changeup that is still improving, though already has good life to it and less deception than it should have. The 6’0”, 180-pound righty has the stuff to be a mid-rotation arm at the height of his ceiling, but will likely fill more of a backend spot for the Cubs. Aside from working on his changeup, he also needs to reduce his extreme flyball tendencies which may not play as well in the launch angle happy MLB lineups. Expect him to see a few more starts at Triple-A before being considered for Kyle Hendricks rotation spot.
Deivi Garcia, RHP NYY – Garcia is just a 20-year-old but has already made it to Double-A for the second time in his career this year. Over 59.2 innings split between High-A Tampa and Double-A Trenton, he has a 3.02 ERA, 1.74 FIP, 40.3-percent K-rate, 11.3 BB-rate, .196 BAA, 1.19 WHIP, and a 15.1 K/9 rate. Those K-rates have equaled 100 strikeouts to 28 walks in those 59.2 innings using his 91-96 mph fastball with riding life for most of them while the 60-grade curveball finishes off the rest. He also has a changeup that’s an average MLB pitch at this point and plays up because of the fastball and curveball. It’s not the smoothest delivery for Garcia but he does repeat it well and exhibits great control with all three pitches. The biggest questions facing Garcia are his durability and role because of his 5’9”, 163-pound frame that may not hold up for extended innings as a starter. The most innings on his arm in season to this point was 2018 with 74 last year. If he can’t hold up for the full season, he could be a valuable swing man in the majors and the fastball/curveball combo could be electric in the late innings as a reliever. While the projection isn’t really left, the floor is quite high and he will either be a mid-rotation starter for the Yankees, a bullpen piece, or part of a trade at the deadline for a big-league starter.
Zac Gallen, RHP MIA – I did a deep dive into Gallen a few weeks ago as a guy who was off to a very hot start at Triple-A New Orleans for the Marlins. Now news has broken that Gallen will be called up Thursday to join the Marlins rotation. Gallen has been striking out everyone in the PCL this year as he’s posted a 33.6-percent K-rate in 91.1 innings with a 1.77 ERA, 3.25 FIP, 1.68 BB/9, 0.71 WHIP, and .152 BAA. Those numbers are even more impressive when you consider they are coming in the most hitter-friendly league in the minors. The righty is a better pitcher than thrower, and that is to say that his velocity doesn’t wow you with his fastball sitting in the low-90s, his cutter sitting in the upper-80s and the curve and change sitting mid-80s, but he knows how to mix pitches and change speeds and locations to keep hitters off-balance. He also gets a great downward plane in his delivery which keeps his stuff down and allows it to play up a smidge too. If you need a major-league ready arm for your Gallen isn’t a bad guy to take a shot on as he is striking out a bunch of guys and plays in the most-pitcher-friendly park in the majors.
Anthony Kay, LHP NYM – In case you haven’t noticed, the Mets may in fact need some help in the starting pitching department as the summer months begin to unfold. Kay is perhaps the best candidate to get those looks, if necessary, and he’s just been promoted to Triple-A Syracuse one start ago. The lefty was taken at the end of the first round in the 2016 draft and then he subsequently underwent Tommy John surgery which pushed his pro debut back to the start of 2018. Since that time he pitched at two levels last year (A-ball and High-A) and then two levels this year, already, (Double-A and Triple-A) and in those 193 innings, he’s posted a 3.44 ERA, 3.32 FIP, 9.3 K/9, 3.4 BB/9, 24.6-percent K-rate, and 1.25 WHIP. Those are all solid numbers across the board. Kay uses a mid-90s fastball with a high spin, a low-80s curveball with elite spin rate and downer action, and a changeup that plays nicely with those and has good sinking action. His arsenal and 6’0”, 218-pound frame have the makings of a mid-rotation starter and he could be up as soon as mid-second half given how fast he’s run through the rest of the levels and the Mets need help in that mid-rotation with Wheeler and Matz and Vargas up-and-down and Thor injured.
Jose Hernandez-Urquidy, RHP HOU – Another team needing some rotation help and long relief help is the Astros, and that’s where Hernandez-Urquidy comes in. The 24-year-old righty has split his season between Double-A Corpus Christi and Triple-A Round Rock to amass 64.2 innings with a 3.76 ERA, 88:13 K:BB ratio and a .207 batting average against. His numbers have actually been better at Triple-A with a 3.41 ERA in 31.2 innings with a 48:8 K:BB ratio and .191 BAA. The right-hander’s best pitch is his plus-changeup that has deceptive fade and good arm speed that matches the fastball. Speaking of the fastball, it’s in the low-90s but has good arm-side run and peaks at 95 mph. He did have elbow reconstruction which has hurt his curveball since as it is now a 45-grade pitch but can be an effective change of pace offering that he throws for strikes. Hernandez-Uriquidy fits as a swingman or a backend rotation piece who could make his way down to Houston in the second half to bolster the rotation.