Zac Lowther

[Luke-OH]

8 minutes ago, RZNJ said:

Ok,  I had gotten the impression that was consistently 86-87 mph.     Apparently he has some deception (them mentioned "elite extension" as well), so this could be a little like old Sid Fernandez whose 88-90 fastball looked like 95-96 to hitters.v 

His fastball plays currently but it's not dominating.  It's got some late action but if it's not located, it gets barreled up.  The awkward swings BA was talking about have more to do with command of the pitch than anything else IMO.

[Aristotelian]

From mlb.com prospect report, pretty impressive start to the year for Lowther. 20 K in 11 IP does not sound like a pitch-to-contact guy. Any scouting reports on what's going on with this kid?

• Orioles No. 17 prospect Zac Lowther allowed three hits over five innings in his second straight scoreless start for Class A Delmarva. He struck out seven and did not issue a walk, throwing 58 of his 84 pitches for strikes in the outing. The 21-year-old lefty has been dominant early in his first full season, posting a 0.36 WHIP with 20 strikeouts across 11 scoreless frames (both wins).

[glenn__davis]

IMO they need to be ready to make a quick promotion with Lowther.  No reason to keep him in Delmarva if he continues to dominate.

[Punchandjudy]

Tony, I wondered who Zac reminds you of?  Haven't seen him live, but he looks like a left handed Dave Steib.  

[Frobby]

4 minutes ago, glenn__davis said:

IMO they need to be ready to make a quick promotion with Lowther.  No reason to keep him in Delmarva if he continues to dominate.

I don’t expect anything in April.   They kept Bundy in Delmarva until late May and that’s about the earliest I’d expect to see any promotions.    

[glenn__davis]

Just now, Frobby said:

I don’t expect anything in April.   They kept Bundy in Delmarva until late May and that’s about the earliest I’d expect to see any promotions.    

Sure, that would be fine.  I'd consider that a quick promotion.  Just see no need to wait until the MiL AS break which is their typical MO.  If he keeps dominating at Delmarva I'd like to see him spend the majority of this season in Frederick.

[Frobby]

10 minutes ago, glenn__davis said:

Sure, that would be fine.  I'd consider that a quick promotion.  Just see no need to wait until the MiL AS break which is their typical MO.  If he keeps dominating at Delmarva I'd like to see him spend the majority of this season in Frederick.

That seems reasonable to me.   For now, I’m just going to sit back and see if Lowther and the others continue to dominate to the same extent they have so far.    They’re off to a great start, for sure.

[Luke-OH]

44 minutes ago, Aristotelian said:

From mlb.com prospect report, pretty impressive start to the year for Lowther. 20 K in 11 IP does not sound like a pitch-to-contact guy. Any scouting reports on what's going on with this kid?

• Orioles No. 17 prospect Zac Lowther allowed three hits over five innings in his second straight scoreless start for Class A Delmarva. He struck out seven and did not issue a walk, throwing 58 of his 84 pitches for strikes in the outing. The 21-year-old lefty has been dominant early in his first full season, posting a 0.36 WHIP with 20 strikeouts across 11 scoreless frames (both wins).

He's never been a pitch to contact guy, he struck out 13.6/9 in the prestigous Cape Cod summer league and 13.3/9 his Junior year at Xavier and 12.4/9 in Aberdeen.

Here's my take on him from my prospect rankings. http://www.orioleshangout.com/2018/02/03/orioles-top-50-4/

“Lowther is a 6’ 2” thickly built LHP.  He has an abbreviated wind-up and a quick, whippy arm action from a low ¾ arm slot. It looks a little violent at first glance but he puts himself in good position by the time his front foot plants. He isn’t traditionally projectable, but he does look like he may be able to benefit for some pro strength and conditioning.”

“His fastball sits 89-91 but I’ve heard that it touches 93-94 on occasion. It has plus late arm-side run but it lacks plane. The movement allowed it to miss bats at the short season level, but I’d expect that to diminish as he faces more advanced hitters. His curveball is the star of the show. It’s an upper 70s tight 11-5 late breaker, it’s only average to above average pitch but plays much better than that because he can spot it all over the plate better than some pitchers can command their fastball. NY/Penn league hitters were helpless against it. He also has the feel for a change-up that is deceptive but lacks tumble, it’s currently fringy but he didn’t throw it much in college and I’d project it to average.”

“Without a tick or two of velocity I can’t see much more than a 4th starter ceiling, but he should be a fast mover and has a relatively high floor (swingman) due to his plus command and at least two MLB average pitches from the left side. I’d expect him to start in High-A Frederick.”

 

[DirtyBird]

14 minutes ago, Luke-OH said:

He's never been a pitch to contact guy, he struck out 13.6/9 in the prestigous Cape Cod summer league and 13.3/9 his Junior year at Xavier and 12.4/9 in Aberdeen.

Here's my take on him from my prospect rankings. http://www.orioleshangout.com/2018/02/03/orioles-top-50-4/

 

He's probably passed #10, #9 and #8 on your prospect list.

[Aristotelian]

11 minutes ago, DirtyBird said:

He's probably passed #10, #9 and #8 on your prospect list.

As well as Tillman and Wright, sigh.

[Luke-OH]

30 minutes ago, DirtyBird said:

He's probably passed #10, #9 and #8 on your prospect list.

No, I wouldn't say that, his profile hasn't changed from my offseason rankings. A dominant performance in Aberdeen last year was something I expected, a dominant performance in Delmarva is also expected. I thought he should have started in Delmarva last year and Frederick this year. Number 8,9,10 haven't changed their profiles in a negative way either. Maybe once I see Lowther later in the year I'll be able to see if he has improved his profile in some way.

[Ruzious]

20 SO's to 1 W and 3 hits.  Very sss, but I think it's obvious based on what he did last year and this that he needs more of a challenge.

[Ruzious]

1 hour ago, Luke-OH said:

No, I wouldn't say that, his profile hasn't changed from my offseason rankings. A dominant performance in Aberdeen last year was something I expected, a dominant performance in Delmarva is also expected. I thought he should have started in Delmarva last year and Frederick this year. Number 8,9,10 haven't changed their profiles in a negative way either. Maybe once I see Lowther later in the year I'll be able to see if he has improved his profile in some way.

Right, if his velocity has increased to 93, it'll be time to raise him up on the list.  It's not a surprise that he's dominating at Delmarva.  

[Tony-OH]

6 hours ago, Punchandjudy said:

Tony, I wondered who Zac reminds you of?  Haven't seen him live, but he looks like a left handed Dave Steib.  

I've only seen one of his starts and it was on video with a bad angle so I'm not an expert on him. I'm going to try and see him soon though because the stats are beginning to become eye opening. I doubt he'll stay in Delmarva very much longer if he keeps throwing like this. 

[Tony-OH]

5 hours ago, Luke-OH said:

No, I wouldn't say that, his profile hasn't changed from my offseason rankings. A dominant performance in Aberdeen last year was something I expected, a dominant performance in Delmarva is also expected. I thought he should have started in Delmarva last year and Frederick this year. Number 8,9,10 haven't changed their profiles in a negative way either. Maybe once I see Lowther later in the year I'll be able to see if he has improved his profile in some way.

I'm not sure you can ever EXPECT a 2nd round pick to dominate any professional level. The fact that he has absolutely dominated so far in his professional career is certainly something of interest. You can expect that he'll do well, but putting up a 95-12 K-BB ratio and a 1.38 ERA in his first 65.1 professional innings pitched is impressive.

I doubt the Orioles will keep him in Delmarva much longer is he keeps dominating though. He'll turn 22-years old at the end of the month so i can see him in Frederick before May if he keeps dominating.