FanPost

A look at four pitchers in Palm Beach

There are 14 active pitchers in PMB. I thought I’d bring up four to see if anyone had any input.

Edwin Nunez is the biggest name. He’s 19, turning 20 in November. He’s from DR and is 6’ 3" 185. He throws hard with his right hand. His fastball averages 96.8 and has peaked at 99.1. He’s thrown 37 innings, 5 of those as a starter. His DRA- is 98 and his cFIP is 99. His traditional numbers are rough: 9.16 ERA, 7.01 FIP, 22.3 K%, 18.1 BB%.

Nunez is almost 3 years younger than the average A ball pitcher. He’s 34th youngest out of 831 A ball pitchers.

I don’t understand cFIP and DRA that well, but it is a pleasant surprise to see them rate him ok, given his struggles this year. It may have something to do with the robo-umps in the Southeast A ball league. Still, he’s 19 in full season ball throwing very hard despite being so skinny.

Edgar Manzo is a 20-year-old righty from Guadalajara, Mexico. He’s 5’11" 181 and in 2019 he pitched in the DSL. Manzo’s fastball sits 90.5 and peaks at 92.1. He’s thrown 34 innings, almost all in relief. His DRA- is 94, cFIP 93, which is good. He’s still young for A ball. He’s striking out 26.1% and walking 10.6. His ERA is 2.91 with a 3.99 FIP.

He’s pitched in relief, but I’m not sure that means much this year. Not many guys in PMB are getting too many innings, whether relieving or starting. I don’t know what his secondary pitches are, but he’s getting good results, and he could still add some size or velocity.

Next is Luis Ortiz, also in his age 20 season, though he just turned 21. He’s 6’3" 170, right-handed and from DR. He started at 17 in the DLS in 2018. In 2019, he started in the DSL again, but moved to the GCL, then to Johnson City at 18. Now in A ball, his fastball sits 92.8 and peaks at 95 over his 37 inning of relief work. His DRA- and cFIP are 87, but his traditional numbers are worse – 5.39 FIP, 21.5 K%, 19.5 BB%.

He’s young, tall, and throws hard at 170 pounds.

Finally, Jose Moreno is in his age 20 year and turns 21 in August. He’s 6’ 197 and from Venezuela. He pitched in the DSL at 16 and 17 and he reached Johnson City in 2019 at 18 for 13 starts. Now he’s in PMB and he has a 83 DRA- and 91 cFIP with a fastball averaging 93 and peaking at 94.7. He’s thrown 51 innings. He strikes out 28% and walks 14% with a 4.67 FIP. If he’s pitched 15% better than average at his age, that’s pretty solid.

I’m not a scout, but these guys seem interesting, especially if the BP stats are credible. I’d love to know more about them if anyone has seen them or has a clue about their other pitches or scouting information.