Originally Posted by
CJ9
Baseball Prospectus write up on Wentz is really encouraging:
Joey Wentz, LHP, Atlanta Braves (Low-A Rome)
Velocity concerns have followed Wentz since his pre-draft days that included a dead arm, but if his fastball continues to pop like it did during a recent outing for Rome, sitting low-90s instead of mid-90s won’t be an issue. He was 88-93, touched 94, and consistently sat 90-92. There was the occasional dip to 88-89 as he labored but, again, the liveliness is the thing to pay attention to here.
Wentz’s fastball only features slight arm-side run and the overall movement is minimal, but it’s effective based on extreme plane from a high slot and 6-foot-5 frame. It jumps from the hand and rides hard to both sides of the plate. He can also work up effectively with the pitch, although his command wavered at times and he left it up and arm-side too often. Wentz’s curveball was 77-81 with tight, two-plane break when he spun it well. The break came late and featured above-average depth. It typically came in at 1/5 and was consistently hard and downward with above-average feel. His changeup didn’t match the first two pitches by lacking feel. It was constantly firm out of the hand. He threw one usable, average change with some fade.
Wentz is the model left-handed pitcher with size, length and strength. His frame and delivery mimic Cole Hamels’ in a clear-cut way. There’s the occasional flying open and arm drag that cause him to miss fastballs up and away to right-handed batters, but the delivery is repeatable and it’s a matter of getting his long limbs in sync. The potential outcome is a no. 2 starter with an above-average to plus fastball, plus breaking ball and enough of a changeup to keep batters honest. Scouts have seen a better version of Wentz’s changeup than I did, so it appears to be the usual growing pains and working to gain a more consistent feel for his stuff. He could realistically slide into a mid-rotation role.