Xavier Moore 2021

[UMDTerrapins]

I've mentioned Moore a handful of times and think he deserves a thread. He was a tall, thin kid when he was drafted by Texas in the 16th round in 2017. He was traded to Minnesota, then quickly traded to the O's for international cap space. He started this season with Delmarva and was promoted to Aberdeen on June 25th. He has filled out and is now a big, hard throwing, right handed reliever with a presence on the mound. He's put up a 2.38 ERA this season, with 32 K's and 13 H in 22 2/3 IP. His FB is mid-90s, sometimes drifting into the high 90's, and he throws a pretty nice changeup, along with a sharp slider. His command isn't great, but he's imposing and has good stuff. Made his debut in 2017 but is still only 22 years old. Had a very nice outing tonight, striking out four in two innings, with just a single allowed. 

[RZNJ]

I've noticed Moore because I didn't think he was very good and then about a week ago he worked an inning and struck out the side.  A few days later he worked one inning and struck out the side.  Today he worked 2 innings, no hits, no walks, struck out 5.  After reading the preceding post from last summer perhaps Xavier Moore is someone to keep an eye on.

[Frobby]

16.9 K/9 is nothing to sneeze at.   His BB rate’s a little higher than you’d like (4.4) but not awful.   Definitely someone to keep an eye on.  

[RZNJ]

2 hours ago, Frobby said:

16.9 K/9 is nothing to sneeze at.   His BB rate’s a little higher than you’d like (4.4) but not awful.   Definitely someone to keep an eye on.  

Right, but no walks in his last 3 outings (only 4 innings).

[JimGinSP]

Maybe we’ll get more from Xavier than Lowther.

(see what I did there?) 

[RZNJ]

39 minutes ago, JimGinSP said:

Maybe we’ll get more from Xavier than Lowther.

(see what I did there?) 

Ha.  Did Lowther go to Xavier?   I guess so.

[UMDTerrapins]

He really needs to move to AA. He's not even listed on the Fangraphs depth chart, so he's easy to overlook when thinking about offseason Rule V exposures. But he's a hard thrower with ridiculous strikeout rates that would be easy to stash in the bullpen of a rebuilding team. I haven't seen him pitch this season, but he's worth keeping an eye on. He definitely caught my attention last year. I'm surprised that he's still at Aberdeen, despite how badly he pitched there last season. 

[RZNJ]

Just now, UMDTerrapins said:

He really needs to move to AA. He's not even listed on the Fangraphs depth chart, so he's easy to overlook when thinking about offseason Rule V exposures. But he's a hard thrower with ridiculous strikeout rates that would be easy to stash in the bullpen of a rebuilding team. I haven't seen him pitch this season, but he's worth keeping an eye on. I'm surprised that he's still at Aberdeen, despite how badly he pitched there last season. 

I'm guessing that if this little roll he's on right now is the real deal, he won't be in Aberdeen much longer.

[UMDTerrapins]

Sitting at a 1.46 ERA now. 43 K in 24.2 IP. He has 4 losses but is 7/7 in save opps. He's been in Aberdeen for over a year now.....it's time for a promotion. 

[Tony-OH]

On 7/30/2022 at 6:46 PM, UMDTerrapins said:

Sitting at a 1.46 ERA now. 43 K in 24.2 IP. He has 4 losses but is 7/7 in save opps. He's been in Aberdeen for over a year now.....it's time for a promotion. 

It probably is time for a promotion, but I wouldn't get too overly excited about him. It's been hard to watch him on video because he's at Aberdeen and Aberdeen is not even showing games anymore after having a bare bones no announce broadcast. 

When I have seen how though he's a 93-95 fastball, changeup, slider guy. The changeup up is his best pitch and he gets a lot of swings and misses. There is some deception in his delivery so that probably helps the fastball play up a bit, but the slider is a below average offering when I've see him. 

He throws a lot of uncompetitive pitches as well. He reminds me a little of Dillion Tate when he was in the minors so he's worth watching, but this isn't enough Felix Bautista situation. 

Saying all that, he's certainly dominated Sally League hitters and probably needs a challenge at Bowie.