On the rise: Nate Pearson, Toronto Blue Jays
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 8/20/1996 (21)
2018 level: Extended Spring
Info: A huge righty (6’6″, 240-250 pounds), Pearson did not draw much pro attention as a high school senior as he was long, but hadn’t filled in, so a low-90s fastball was not that attractive. He first enrolled with Florida International then Junior College of Central Florida after his first year at FIU, adding plenty of strength and a quick-developing feel for not just one offspeed pitch but three!
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He worked out of the bullpen initially in JuCo, seeing his fastball run up to triple digits, which got plenty talking about him. When he was moved to the rotation, he sat at 93-95, touching 96-97 with excellent late movement and tremendous plane.
Pearson’s curve and slider tended to run together a bit as an amateur, but with work as a pro, he’s seen good separation, and he’s actually shown some ability to manipulate his slider in two ways to get one with more sweeping action and one with more of a traditional bite.
Pearson’s change has excellent late movement, and many scouts like it better than either of his breaking pitches, grading it as a plus pitch presently with room to grow. Add in his athleticism, and Pearson is a guy who could not only move quickly, but he could have an incredibly high upside.
Next: CTTP's Top 150 prospects
So of the MLB top prospects, that is the top 10 right-handed pitching prospects for 2018. Who is too high? Too low? Missing entirely from the list? Comment below!!