SoCal ProCase Spotlight: RHP Jacob Kieffer
August 12, 2020
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FULLERTON, CA. - Jacob Kieffer left the Silver State for the Golden State in hopes of garnering new looks and upping his uncommitted value. One of the top uncommitted players in the state of Nevada hails from one of Las Vegas top baseball schools, Desert Oasis. The athletic right-hander utilizes his athleticism on the mound to show down the line projection with starter stuff. Kieffer threw twenty-seven pitches; fourteen fastballs, nine curveballs and four change-ups. In the seven batters that he faced, Kieffer struck out three, all of which were strike-outs swinging.
TrackMan metrics showed quality metric averages across the board, a good starting point for a projectable pitcher with a lot left to offer. The spin rates for his fastball, curveball and change-up are exciting metrics that should give college recruiters and professional scouts a reason to take interest now. Couple the metrics with his athleticism and down the line projection and there is a lot to like in the uncommitted right-hander. With 67 representatives from 22 MLB Organizations in attendance, some teams 2-3 deep, and the talent on the SoCal ProCase roster, Kieffer set out to show that his 15th overall ranking and 4th overall right-handed pitcher in Nevada is for real and worthy of a division 1 commitment sooner rather than later.
THE REPORT:
Body: 6-foot-1, 170 pounds. Athletic build with whippy athletic actions. Strength improvements throughout should help him make a jump in velocity. Athleticism and baseball feel will help with his durability on the mound.
Mechanics: Right-handed pitcher. Releases from a consistent overhand slot. Starts with his hands at chest height before lowering them to belt height and starting his arm swing. Balanced mechanically throughout his throwing progression. Consistent landing spot and release point seen via the eye test and backed up through TrackMan data. Limited usage of the lower half, leg kick does not reach 90 degrees, makes him quick to the plate and compact but limits his lower body engagement. Keeps his head in line with the catcher, extends with the arm well and releases with a fairly consistent follow through.
Fastball: Release speed averaged 86.4 mph, minimum release speed of 84.7 mph and a maximum release speed of 87.4 mph. Spin rate averaged 2561 RPM (revolutions per minute), minimum 2414 RPM and maximum 2640 RPM. Spin rate average is above the 2019 MLB season average of 2266 RPM. Induced vertical break average of 17.1 shows that his fastball has significant ride and the induced horizontal break average of 6 shows that his fastball has slight run. These two metrics show that his fastball should result in more fly balls than ground balls, lower batting average against, more swinging strikes and pop-up percentage than a fastball with sink.
Curveball: Release speed averaged 75.9 mph, minimum release speed of 70.4 mph and a maximum release speed of 78.4 mph. Spin rate averaged 2715 RPM, minimum 2524 RPM and maximum 2882 RPM. Spin rate average is above the 2019 MLB season average of 2609 RPM. Induced vertical break average of -6.3 and induced horizontal break average of -5, putting his curveball is in the top 15% high school average. Showing that his curveball has quality depth, shape and break to it.
Changeup: Release speed averaged 80 mph, minimum release speed of 78.7 mph and a maximum release speed of 82 mph. Spin rate averaged 1887 RPM, minimum 1764 RPM and maximum 1973 RPM. Spin rate average is above the 2019 MLB season average of 1777 RPM. Induced vertical break average of 12.3 (35th percentile) and induced horizontal break average of 10 (64th percentile). These two metrics show that his change-up has slight sink and above run.
UPCOMING EVENTS:
