jack leiter curveball

He went on to fan six in a row and 10 of the next 12 batters he faced. Jack Leiter, RHP, Vanderbilt (15 IP, 0.60 ERA, 26 K’s, 7 BBs): Leiter, a 21-year-old sophomore-eligible, has seen his fastball play up into the mid … Scouting Grades: Fastball: 55 Curveball: 55 Slider: 50 Changeup: 50 Control: 55 . Here are his three strikeout pitches from one inning: Kumar Rocker, K'ing the Side. Perfect Game scouts assign a PG grade to all players that are evaluated at a PG Showcase. His curveball and slider both have insane movement. For example, if other things are held equal, a pitch from Josh Hader (low release point) will generate a flatter VAA than one from Blake Snell (high release point). In the fourth and fifth innings, Leiter began pitching backwards a bit and landed several curveballs for strikes early in counts. Percentile is calculated with your top result against other top results recorded in the same year from players in the same grad year class. Three quality secondary pitches he can use at any time, focused on his curveball this outing but have seen the focus change from inning to inning in longer stints, can spin both the curveball and slider well. Pitching Ninja provided the rest. In sum, Jack Leiter is the ideal modern pitching prospect, one who encapsulates the direction in which player development is headed. I should note, however, that unless a pitch’s VAA is extreme, it doesn’t seem to have a significant impact. None of this really matters, though. Welcome. In last week’s early 2021 MLB draft rankings, Vanderbilt right-handers Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker were second and third, respectively, on the list — and the top two pitching prospects on our board. After a pop out to start the game, he allowed a hard single and then struck out five straight. Fortunately, Leiter’s fastball is an outlier. You can flag a comment by clicking its flag icon. They could be the first pair of college teammates taken 1-2 in nearly 60 years of MLB draft annals. They are also the reigning Division I national champion. You might have expected more from a top pitching prospect, and that’s understandable. Up to 94 mph at PG National. As the college baseball season chugs along, I’d recommend keeping a close eye on his performance and evolution as a pitcher. It’s as if someone drew its trajectory using a ruler and a pencil. Leiter's intimidating body language on the mound would play very well in Boston if he were to be drafted by Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom. Admins may or may not choose to remove the comment or block the author. Earlier, I mentioned that Leiter is averaging 93 to 94 mph on his fastball. His less serious work can be found on Twitter @justinochoi. THE WORLD'S LARGEST AND MOST COMPREHENSIVE SCOUTING ORGANIZATION. He started his career with the Yankees in 1987 and pitched for them until he was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays in 1989. What is known nearly four months before the draft is that two pitchers from Vanderbilt, Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker, could make history. Website admin will know that you reported it. Jack Leiter is a baseball player, currently playing for the Vanderbilt Commodores baseball team of Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. They played a doubleheader with Kumar Rocker starting the opener and Jack Leiter starting the second game. His slider and changeup are also solid offerings. Updated: Friday, April 9, 2021 11:23 AM ET, Park Factors Different schools have different measuring devices, all of which have varying degrees of accuracy. As proof, here’s a list of the 10 flattest fastballs of the 2020 season, featuring Leiter: For what it’s worth, TrackMan data on college players can sometimes be unreliable. It is a legit plus offering based on its slower velocity and late bite. Longer extension often leads to a lower release height and thus a flatter VAA, which helps, but the real benefit lies in how it affects perceived velocity. It averaged around 92 mph last season, a mark that hardly stood out. The New York Yankees were graced for several years to have Al Leiter pitch for them. Medium athletic build with good present strength. Jack Thomas Leiter (born April 21, 2000) is an American college baseball pitcher for the Vanderbilt Commodores. This is where a relatively new metric called Vertical Approach Angle (VAA) comes to the rescue. In order to receive a PG Grade, players must attend a Showcase to complete their full evaluation. What’s his secret? The two of them both have a chance to go first overall, with Rocker currently holding the advantage. Similarly, Jack Leiter is the son of Al Leiter, a 19-year MLB veteran and a two-time All-Star. Analytically-savvy organizations like the Dodgers, Rays, and Reds have hopped on the bandwagon, and it’s only a matter of time before others catch up. Vanderbilt's Jack Leiter had quite the debut into the college baseball world. His raw spin rates are between 2200 and 2400 rpm, a range that would appear light-blue if displayed on a Baseball Savant page. Medium athletic build with good present strength. In sum, Jack Leiter is the ideal modern pitching prospect, one who encapsulates the direction in which player development is headed. Kiley McDaniel had Leiter second on his February board, ahead of Rocker, and noted that ranking Leiter above Rocker is “the consensus view after they’ve each made their first start of the season.”. Justin has always been a baseball fan and a writer, but it wasn’t until Hyun Jin Ryu began dominating in 2019 that he started to fuse those interests together. Like Jack’s dad, Al. Jack Leiter has been sitting 95-100 on the heater and then dropped this 74 mph curveball in there. and play-by-play data provided by Sports Info Solutions. He was (and still is) No. Some pertinent details: since pitchers throw from an elevated mound, VAA will always be negative, and it can be either flat (less negative), or steep (more negative). All I added were their stats and put it in article form. His fastball sat 91-94 and he showed his usual curveball, an above average offering with 11/5 shape, sharpness and depth at 77-78. Jack Leiter is a 2019 RHP/MIF with a 6-1 195 lb. In a world of baseball formulas that exceed our puny digit spans, VAA is not only intuitive but also easy to internalize. Let’s have a look at our contestants: What surprised me is how difficult it was to find pitchers with fastballs similar to Leiter’s. by Retrosheet. But he’s managed to transform a potential weakness into one of his greatest strengths. Through four innings, Leiter had … But after reading something like this from a college student, it makes me realize how really old I am. by Handedness, Jack Leiter’s Fastball Exemplifies His Talent, second on his February board, ahead of Rocker, Nomar Mazara Is Hitting Balls in the Air (Yes, It’s Early April). We’ve explored several metrics, like VAA, extension, spin efficiency, and vertical break in order to wax poetic about Leiter’s fastball. The others were generally in the dirt and non-competitive. Jack Leiter was born to play baseball, and has a lot to live up to, but will also look to create his own legacy. It’s normally 74-78 MPH but it plays well off his fastball. His first strikeout came on a curveball down. Leiter’s feel for his curveball got better as the start progressed. However, it can be tricky to evaluate him because some of the standard metrics undersell his greatness. Leiter, 20, who throws in the low 90s but wields an above-average curveball, finished with a career-high 16 strikeouts, and he threw strikes on 81 of his 124 pitches. Oh, and fun fact: He had a no-hit streak that lasted 20 innings. The answer lies in his release height, a variable that alters VAA. His slider and changeup are also solid offerings. Jack Leiter. Mentally picture their throwing motions, and the idea should make sense. By the time he’s ready to make his major league debut, though, it wouldn’t surprise me if dozens like him emerge. That’s because his fastball’s spin efficiency – the percent of a pitch’s spin that contributes to its movement – is regularly above 95%. Great stuff. All major league baseball data including pitch type, velocity, batted ball location, frame from Summit, NJ who attends Delbarton HS. Unfair. — JJ Cooper (@jjcoop36) February 19, 2020 I mean, take a look at this: I don’t care what the physics says – that pitch traveled in a straight, horizontal line. This is Justin’s first piece as a FanGraphs contributor. Leiter’s pitches include a fastball that sits in the upper-90s while occasionally touching 100. What matters is that Leiter is somehow able to appear in the above table as a college pitcher. Fastball topped out at 94 mph, has the ability to spot his fastball to all quadrants and does so frequently. I then plotted their average extension on the x-axis, and the difference between their release speed and effective (perceived) speed on the y-axis. Listed as 6-foot-1 on the Commodores’ website, Jack Leiter is an unconventional pitching prospect. Does Leiter exploit this fact, and do I have a GIF as an example? That’s elite, even by major-league standards. But regardless of what happens in the future, he’s already made a lasting impression on fans and scouts. Leiter issued a full-count walk to the first batter he faced and then set down the next 27 en route to a no-hitter and a 5-0 win over the Gamecocks. They have milliseconds to react to high-speed pitches. Yes, and yes: It’s against a college crop of hitters, sure, and better, pro hitters might not be quite as flummoxed, but the point that an extreme VAA comes in handy irrespective of vertical location still stands. The son of former MLB pitcher Al Leiter, Jack works mostly in the low-90s on his fastball, using a knockout plus curveball as his best secondary pitch, traits that … Leiter looks like a future ace that the Red Sox could be coveting in the draft. In the first few innings, Leiter threw 10 or 11 of them and only two landed for strikes. That doesn’t mean Leiter has to pitch exclusively up in the zone. This speaks volumes about Leiter’s talent, but also, reveals that the combination of low release height, huge extension, and high spin efficiency is still a relatively new idea in the world of baseball. He threw 84 pitches. Years of work with his father helped Leiter develop picture-perfect mechanics in order to optimize his 6-foot-1-inch, 205-pound frame. Major League and Minor League Baseball data provided by Major League Baseball. That’s it! According to Baseball Prospectus, it has a future of a 70-grade pitch. Jack Leiter has been outstanding. Not to mention that, as of now, we can only estimate the VAAs of major league pitchers. When you look up the definition of “nasty” in the dictionary, you’ll see a picture of Jack Leiter’s curveball. Leiter attended Delbarton School in Morristown, New Jersey, where he played baseball and was teammates with Anthony Volpe. Kumar Rocker entered 2021 as the consensus top Draft prospect and has excelled over his first seven starts. The Commodore's freshman tossed five no-hit innings in his first start of the season. Son of former big league left hander Al Leiter. An added bonus: spin-efficient fastballs perform well up in the zone, a fact that pairs well with Leiter’s aforementioned characteristics. Selected to play in the 2018 Perfect Game All-American Classic. And please don't worry, your report will be anonymous. Career. All Win Expectancy, Leverage Index, Run Expectancy, and Fans Scouting Report data licenced from TangoTiger.com. 2 Related. Of course, the ERA seems unsustainable, and it wouldn’t be surprising if the right-hander runs into a bad day – it’s a volatile sport, after all. In general, fastballs with flatter VAAs thrive up in the zone, while fastballs with steeper VAAs thrive down in the zone. Beyond the fastball, Jack Leiter throws a curveball that complements it with a mirroring spin axis. And it was all working Saturday against the Gamecocks (11-6, 0-2), who lost their sixth consecutive game, and were no-hit for the first time since 1990. For example, let’s consider his four-seam fastball. Fellow Vanderbilt right-hander Jack Leiter has been even better. At this point, to call Leiter outstanding might even be an understatement. 1 on our draft board, while MLB.com placed Rocker first and Leiter sixth in a ranking published in mid-December and Prospects Live featured Rocker first and Leiter fifth in their own mock draft published in January. The important question, though, is how those metrics compare to those of notable pitchers. Kumar Rocker went five innings against Georgia State, allowing three hits and three walks, with six strikeouts. Beyond the fastball, Jack Leiter throws a curveball that complements it with a mirroring spin axis. To demonstrate this effect, I compiled major league pitchers in 2020 who threw at least 100 fastballs. His previous work can be found at Prospects365 and Dodgers Digest. In addition to a low release height, Leiter possesses elite extension, which measures how far a pitch is released from the mound. It’s nothing new, but does illustrate the benefits of extension, at least as it pertains to four-seam fastballs. Leiter also has a famous father, former Mets standout lefty, Al Leiter, and also was a nationally regarded prep prospect with a long scouting track record. He’s struck out 59 batters. But those caveats aside, Leiter’s dominance is no fluke. So far this college baseball season, the sophomore from Vanderbilt University is sporting a minuscule 0.25 ERA in 36 innings pitched. Jack Leiter ready to practice All UZR (ultimate zone rating) calculations are provided courtesy of Mitchel Lichtman. Potential very high draft pick and/or Elite level college prospect, Potential top 10 round pick and/or highest level college prospect, Potential draft pick and/or excellent college prospect, College prospect, possible future draft pick with development, Possible College prospect and/or possible HS varsity. The son of former MLB pitcher Al Leiter, Jack works mostly in the low-90s on his fastball, using a knockout plus curveball as his best secondary pitch, traits that attract several scouts to his games. Release the ball closer to home plate, make hitters’ lives worse. Lows 90s RHP who showed outstanding pitchability at PG Underclass AA Games. In the months leading up to the college baseball season, however, Leiter was at times overshadowed by teammate and fellow pitcher Kumar Rocker. Lastly, to avoid messing up the axes, I’ve elected to only look at pitchers who had a positive difference. Putting it all together, it’s time for a fun activity: comps! He Leiter’s secondary pitch is a curveball, and it’s a great curve. Jack Leiter is a 2019 RHP/MIF with a 6-1 195 lb. He’s written for a few places since then, including Prospects365 and Dodgers Digest, and is now hoping to pester the good people of FanGraphs with his deep-dives into niche topics. His set of skills is, at the moment, special. Spin rate on a fastball doesn’t matter unless the spin is helping to defy the pull of gravity, and well, Leiter’s fastball is averaging nearly 20 inches of vertical break this season, according to TrackMan data I’ve collected. Play-by-play data prior to 2002 was obtained free of charge from and is copyrighted So far this season, Leiter has averaged a release height of 5.2 feet, allowing him to minimize the approach angle of his fastball. There’s no doubt that Jack Leiter is good. It sits in the 74-78 … Not even middling raw spin rates have been an issue for Leiter. In his article I mentioned earlier, Chamberlain discovered that while flat fastballs don’t generate whiffs when located down, they are still useful at eliciting called strikes there. 2021 PG Invitational National Championship, Very good at Area Codes and PG All American Classic. He does need to demonstrate that he can wield his flat fastball against higher levels of competition for us to crown him a potential ace, and I should note that I’m not making a direct comparison between the entirety of the pitchers I named above and Leiter, because that would be silly; it’s just their fastballs that are relevant. Vanderbilt Commodores is an American National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) college baseball team. Jack Leiter is going to be a problem (via @PitchingNinja) pic.twitter.com/0U3hvezzP2 — Baseball Bros (@BaseballBros) February 26, 2020 At just … Classic starting pitchers arsenal and the command to go with it. Once you realize how flat the pitch is, it becomes impossible to ignore. Jack Leiter isn’t quite as imposing at 6-1, 205, but he brings his own impressive athletic pedigree (he’s the son of MLB star Al Leiter) and daunting pitching skills into the season. He won all seven with a tidy 0.84 ERA, posting a .137 opponents' average and a 61/12 K/BB ratio in 43 innings. The fact that Leiter’s mechanics allow him to erase a good chunk of that precious time, combined with the added difficulty of dealing with a flat fastball, is ridiculous. So here’s a look at Kumar Rocker and Jack Leiter from yesterday. You might already be familiar with it if you’ve read this great Alex Chamberlain article. He provides a more detailed explanation, but basically, VAA describes the angle at which a pitch crosses home plate. Some prospects take years of toiling in the minors to develop qualities present in established players, but in Leiter’s case, he’s armed with one at the age of just 20. Full body delivery, gets his back and hips turned well, deep arm circle in back, has well controlled energy in his delivery, bit cross body on release. So why does it matter? VAA dictates where a fastball should be located in order to increase its efficacy, both in terms of generating whiffs and limiting hard contact. Leiter’s ability to miss bats was on full showcase this spring; an 11.5 SwStr% in total is well above average, though his 6.9 SwStr% on the curveball leaves some to be desired. Full body delivery, gets his back and hips turned well, deep arm circle in back, has well controlled energy in his delivery, bit cross body on release. Hard to do much better in your first game. Summit's Jack Leiter, a Vanderbilt right-hander and the son of former New York Yankees and New York Mets pitcher Al Leiter, will be one of the top selections in the 2021 MLB Draft. I had a chance to see the two pitch back-to-back in both ends of a … On the summer showcase circuit, Leiter worked mostly in the low-90s, using a knockout plus curveball as his best secondary pitch — but with inconsistent command. Leiter stole the show, dominating for two innings with his fastball and curveball. And though Leiter was obviously well-regarded, his placement on public draft boards ranged. In reality, it’s likely that the speed opposing batters experience is a tick or two above what radar guns would tell you, giving Leiter a competitive edge. That’s largely thanks to a masterful no-hitter against South Carolina on March 21, during which he fanned 16 batters and allowed just a single walk. It also, hopefully, illustrates why hitters have such a difficult time with Leiter. He pitched for four teams, including the Florida Marlins, before becoming a star pitcher for … Justin is a contributor at FanGraphs. 2020’s Flattest Fastballs ft. Jack Leiter, SOURCE: Alex Chamberlain’s Pitch Leaderboard. Jack Leiter's college debut for Vandy: 5 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 12 SO, 52 strikes in 80 pitches. The list grew thin after the obvious choices of Gerrit Cole, Shane Bieber, and Trevor Bauer, which is why I had to stretch it out with Deivi García. People have been posting highlights from their days, so why not share the early looks at these two college aces against Wright State. Outside of the baseball blogosphere, he’s a student at Washington University in St. Louis. The son of two-time All-Star and World Series champion Al Leiter, Jack escaped a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the first inning by punching out the side. Comparing Leiter to Rocker, Jack Leiter has better command overall of all of his pitches than Rocker, but Rocker’s size and athleticism are more pronounced and … frame from Summit, NJ who attends Delbarton HS. Like Kumar, Leiter checks off numerous boxes for the Red Sox as they continue to retool their farm system. Leiter’s top two offerings are the fastball (already mentioned above), which had an 11.3 SwStr%, and the slider (22.6%). 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In speed innings with his father helped Leiter develop picture-perfect mechanics in order to optimize his 6-foot-1-inch, frame... Hard to do much better in your first game 6-foot-1-inch, 205-pound frame in Morristown, Jersey... Leiter outstanding might jack leiter curveball be an understatement which have varying degrees of.! To evaluate him because some of the next 12 batters he faced a potential weakness one. Several years to have Al Leiter pitch for them 195 lb a pitcher he faced putting all! Able to appear in the dirt and non-competitive as it pertains to fastballs...