Mick Abel Stats & Scouting Report College Baseball, MLB Draft, Prospects

BA Grade: 60/High

Track Record: Abel first emerged on the scene after striking out Riley Greene as a junior in 2019 and continued to gain steam over the next year. He ranked as the top high school pitcher in the 2020 draft class thanks to an impressive four-pitch arsenal, pitchability and the best command in the class. The Phillies were ecstatic to draft him at No. 15 overall, making him the first high school pitcher selected in the first round out of Oregon since Matt Smith in 1994. He joined the organization at instructional league in the fall, where he lived up to his lofty draft status. The 20-year-old righthander had an encouraging full-season debut in 2021, ranking as the top pitcher in the Low-A Southeast by league managers and pitching to a 4.43 ERA in 14 starts. Abel missed the last two months of the season with a shoulder injury, but it wasn't considered serious and he rejoined the team at instructional league.

Scouting Report: Abel's high school team didn't take the field in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, but he showed no rust in his pro debut. He has an athletic build at 6-foot-5, 190 pounds with projection remaining and a clean delivery. His fastball is his best pitch, sitting from 94-97 mph and topping out at 99. It's a swing-and-miss pitch with huge vertical break and averages 2,500 rpm, giving hitters headaches. Abel's slider was voted the best breaking pitch in the 2020 prep class by scouting directors and it lived up to its reputation in 2021. It's a firm, hard pitch that sits in the mid-to-high 80s and blends well with his fastball, diving late on hitters. He's made significant progress improving his changeup. It's a plus high-80s offering with tumble and fading life, giving him a third swing-and-miss weapon. Abel's curveball is a clear fourth pitch, but it has good spin metrics and flashes plus at times. His control faltered at points, but he's an aggressive strike-thrower, as evidenced by his 13.3 strikeouts per nine innings, and he tunnels his pitches off of each other with ease. Abel ran into trouble with his delivery in the middle of the season, which caused his command to worsen. He was spending his time at instructional league getting the consistency back with his delivery to allow his command to catch up to his stuff. The Phillies aren't concerned and rave about his makeup and work ethic, and the organization firmly believes it has a future top-of-the-rotation starter.

The Future: It wasn't a perfect debut for Abel, but he still stood out as one of the top pitching prospects in baseball, with three plus pitches, a fourth average offering and room to keep improving. He should start the 2022 season at High-A, where he will continue to hone his changeup, curveball and delivery. He has all the ingredients to pitch in the middle to front of a big league rotation.

Scouting Grades:
Fastball: 65. Curveball: 50. Slider: 60. Changeup: 60. Control: 55.

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