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Alejandro Sanabia, RHSP, FLA
Background: Just 20, Sanabia’s star has risen considerably this year. Coming into the game he was sporting a sub-2.00 ERA and nearly four-to-one K:BB, striking out 42 and allowing just two home runs in 57 IP. He’s started to garner a fair share of attention as an intriguing sleeper prospect.
What I saw: If I met Sanabia on the street and he told me he was a high-school second baseman, I would believe him. The 6’1” listing on the Hammerheads website seems generous, and he’s quite skinny. He fields his position very well and is athletic.
Sanabia seemed to be overthrowing a bit. He needs to break the habit of flying open with his front shoulder, which leaves the fastball high. I can’t blame him for trying, though; the fastball was mostly sitting between 85-87, and he only got up to 89 twice. It’s got good run, but not a lot of sink.
It took me (and two of the scouts I was sitting with) a couple innings to get a read on his offspeed pitches. What turned out to be a changeup, we first thought to be some sort of Brad-Lidge-esque slider (where it’s more vertically oriented than most sliders). Later, he started throwing his real slider more, and the difference became obvious.
The changeup, despite coming in only a few clicks off his facebook (80-81), is a darn good pitch. He doesn’t telegraph it a bit, which is the key, and he commands it decently. It’s got strong dive to it. The slider (also 80-81) was effective when down in the zone. The problem is, he was missing high with it quite often. Sort of "getting under it," as they say. It’s not looking like a future plus pitch right now, but if he learns to harness it, it will give right-handed batters a little more to think about when facing him.
Outlook: The lack of velocity is a problem right now and will probably leave Sanabia badly exposed as he starts to move into leagues where one is less likely to get by on good offspeed pitches alone. However, he's half a decade and 25 pounds short of his peak. The command and strong changeup are great places to start; if he fills out and can get his fastball velocity more in the 88-91 range (which isn't so hard to imagine), he's got a future. But for now, he's someone to keep an eye on, not someone to pin hopes upon.
Background: Just 20, Sanabia’s star has risen considerably this year. Coming into the game he was sporting a sub-2.00 ERA and nearly four-to-one K:BB, striking out 42 and allowing just two home runs in 57 IP. He’s started to garner a fair share of attention as an intriguing sleeper prospect.
What I saw: If I met Sanabia on the street and he told me he was a high-school second baseman, I would believe him. The 6’1” listing on the Hammerheads website seems generous, and he’s quite skinny. He fields his position very well and is athletic.
Sanabia seemed to be overthrowing a bit. He needs to break the habit of flying open with his front shoulder, which leaves the fastball high. I can’t blame him for trying, though; the fastball was mostly sitting between 85-87, and he only got up to 89 twice. It’s got good run, but not a lot of sink.
It took me (and two of the scouts I was sitting with) a couple innings to get a read on his offspeed pitches. What turned out to be a changeup, we first thought to be some sort of Brad-Lidge-esque slider (where it’s more vertically oriented than most sliders). Later, he started throwing his real slider more, and the difference became obvious.
The changeup, despite coming in only a few clicks off his facebook (80-81), is a darn good pitch. He doesn’t telegraph it a bit, which is the key, and he commands it decently. It’s got strong dive to it. The slider (also 80-81) was effective when down in the zone. The problem is, he was missing high with it quite often. Sort of "getting under it," as they say. It’s not looking like a future plus pitch right now, but if he learns to harness it, it will give right-handed batters a little more to think about when facing him.
Outlook: The lack of velocity is a problem right now and will probably leave Sanabia badly exposed as he starts to move into leagues where one is less likely to get by on good offspeed pitches alone. However, he's half a decade and 25 pounds short of his peak. The command and strong changeup are great places to start; if he fills out and can get his fastball velocity more in the 88-91 range (which isn't so hard to imagine), he's got a future. But for now, he's someone to keep an eye on, not someone to pin hopes upon.
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