4. Alex Faedo, RHP
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 11/12/1995 (22)
2017 teams/levels played for: none
2017 Stats: no professional stats
Info: Widely considered one of the best pitchers in college coming into the 2017 season, Faedo really had a solid season, but fall knee surgery meant he was slow to show his dominance in the spring, though he finished with a flourish, leading the Gators to the College World Series title behind his masterful pitching.
However, that deep run into the CWS meant that Faedo had taxed his arm significantly on the season, and while the Detroit Tigers were overjoyed to see Faedo fall all the way to them at #18 in the first round, they also were wise to give him time to rest his weary arm.
Don’t expect Faedo to take long to show the Tigers brilliant in their selection once he’s on the mound in 2018
Don’t expect Faedo to take long to show the Detroit Tigers brilliant in their selection once he’s on the mound in 2018. He features a fastball that is essentially three pitches, as he can sink his fastball or cut his fastball with the same velocity range as the traditional run his fastball gets, giving hitters fits when they do recognize fastball out of hand.
He mixes a dominant slider that some have graded as high as a plus-plus pitch already with low-80s velocity to give him a solid 10-MPH differential from his fastball, but also getting similar out of hand look on the slider before getting incredible late bite and depth, both of which he appears able to manipulate as well, similar to his fastball.
The change works best off of his sinking fastball, but it also is reminiscent of his slider, so he does get plenty of weak groundouts and swings over the top of the pitch, giving him three above-average to plus pitches, two of which he can manipulate to really give him six to seven pitch looks for a hitter.
This should allow Faedo to move quickly as a mid-rotation arm with his solid build (6’5″, 225 pounds) and easy, repeatable delivery working well in the middle of a rotation, however, he could be the type whose command/control plays up or another pitch is added and he becomes an ace-type. He reminds me very strongly of Lance Lynn at Lynn’s best with the Cardinals.
Faedo will open in full-season ball, likely in high-A Lakeland, and it would not surprise if he ended up in AA by the end of the season with his impressive overall package. However, he’s still not tossed a pro inning, so there’s the concern enough to have him here on this list.
3. Daz Cameron, OF
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 1/15/1997 (21)
2017 teams/levels played for: low-A West Michigan Whitecaps, low-A Quad Cities River Bandits
2017 Stats: .271/.351/.463, 522 PA, 14 HR, 32 SB, 48/112 BB/K
Info: Coming out of high school in 2015, the Georgia native was able to push himself all the way to the 37th overall selection due to his bonus demands, allowing the Astros to manipulate their bonus structure with 4 picks in the first 46 picks to pay Cameron $4 million to sign.
Cameron has struggled since then to really establish himself. He has flashed his athleticism, swiping 24 bases in just 51 games in his draft season and another dozen bases in just 40 games in an injury-plagued 2016, but he really took a significant step forward in 2017.
Cameron didn’t just show over the fence power and flash his speed, but he also showed excellent gap power as well. While he did have a less than desirable BB/K rate, that doesn’t truly show the pitch recognition he showed in 2017, with an aggressive approach due to his position in the lineup frequently having him swinging at pitches he’d likely have held up on otherwise.
Traded to Detroit as part of the Justin Verlander deal, Cameron appears ready to spring up the Detroit Tigers system. He isn’t at the level of elite defender in center field that his father, Mike Cameron, was, but he has the ability to stick at the position going forward.
The Detroit Tigers will likely open Cameron in high-A Lakeland to begin the 2018 season, but if he can show continued growth from his 2017, he could reach the upper minors by the end of the season.
Next: #1 and #2