San Diego Padres: Michel Baez to make first High-A start

Michel Baez will make his first High-A start, and he’s impressing the San Diego Padres organization, boding well for their future.

The San Diego Padres struck gold when they found Michel Baez in 2016, and they paid a lot of gold to get him. Giving the right-handed pitcher a 3 million dollar signing bonus is right in retrospect, but at the time it raised some eyebrows.

Little was known about the 6’8″ 220-pound Cuban other than the fact that he was 6’8″, which is a pretty good thing to be. His national profile is about to expand though, as he’s scheduled to make his first High-A start on Monday night for the San Diego Padres affiliate Lake Elsinore.

Personally, I’m really excited to see Michel on a bigger stage. He’s a prospect that I desperately want to know more about and having a larger sample size will better help determine what he’s capable of.

While High-A isn’t the best competition, it does give some idea of how he’ll be in the majors. We’ve featured Baez on the site before, but we still don’t know much about the right-hander.

Here’s an excerpt from MLB’s scouting report on Michel Baez:

“A physically large and imposing presence on the mound who operates from a three-quarters slot, Baez generates easy plus-plus velocity in a fastball that bumps 98-99 mph and consistently sits in the mid-90s. His heater pairs nicely with an upper-80s slider that flashes above-average potential with two-plane action, and club officials expect both his curveball and changeup to be at least average once fully developed.

If you think those numbers are good, take a look at his stature — it’s quite impressive.

Though listed at 6-foot-8 and 220 pounds, Baez showed in 2017 that he could repeat his delivery and pound the strike zone better than most hurlers of comparable size. His command does lag behind his control, however, and he’ll need to locate his fastball better to be effective at higher levels. If he can do so, the big right-hander could become a mid-rotation starter, if not more.”

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Only time will tell what Michel Baez becomes for the San Diego Padres, but pitching in Petco Park would no doubt be a good fit, being a pitcher’s park. For the time being, it will be fun watching him “grow” in the minors.