Player Profile: South Carolina RHP Evan Beal

Video of Beal from H.S.: http://bit.ly/Hkunb7

Grade: Freshman

Hometown: Fairfax Station, VA

Notable Information: Drafted in the 8th Round of the 2011 MLB First-Year Player Draft by the Kansas City Royals; Rated No. 393 best high school prospect in the nation (2011) by Perfect Game USA; Rated No. 2 player in Virginia (2011) by Baseball America

Body: 6-3, 185

Background with the player: Observed player’s outing v. University of Kentucky on 3/16/2012

Tools:  Beal has the ideal body for a young pitching prospect.  He is listed at 6’3 on the South Carolina website (although other publications list him as tall as 6’5) and has an athletic body type that could carry an additional fifteen to twenty-five pounds at full maturity.  Like many pitchers, Beal’s release point is of the high three-quarter variety (there are very few straight overhand deliveries—Josh Collmenter, etc.) and the delivery is smooth and easy, as the ball appears to explode out of his hand upon release.  From the windup Beal’s rhythm, pace, and composure reminds me greatly of Rick Porcello, and like Porcello (at least out of high school) Beal features an overpowering fastball.  While he is facing collegiate hitters, Beal’s FB velocity is still a 60 at present, as it sits around 92-94 mph with the ability to play up to 95-96.  In the outing that I observed Beal’s command of the fastball was pretty solid and the pitch featured a bit of late run on it.  Beal had two secondary offerings that he featured—a sharp curveball and a hard slider/cutter that had some nice late movement on it.  It is hard for me to throw a grade on either pitch as this moment, given my limited background with the player, but from my vantage point both pitches had great, late break that has the ability to miss bats consistently.   

Results: As of tonight, March 27, 2012 Beal has appeared in 10 games, throwing 14 and 2/3 innings, allowing 7 hits, 5 walks, and six earned runs for a 3.68 ERA and .817 WHIP.  He has struck out 23 batters over his 14.2 innings for a K/9 ratio of 14.11.  However, he has been prone to the long ball, giving up three homers in his limited workload.  Specifically, in the outing that I saw—an appearance v. Kentucky on Friday night game—Beal gave up a walk-off homer.  In his inning and a third of work, Beal struck out three hitters and looked great, except for hitting a batter and giving up the long ball.  The homer was off of his curveball, a spinner that he left over the heart of the plate.  Regardless of the result I was very impressed with Beal’s arsenal and his numbers (specifically his strikeout numbers) this year, show that his stuff is dominant.  However, with that being said, I think that he should be careful not to fall in love with his curveball—it is a very good pitch and has missed bats, but I felt that he relied on that pitch too much and has the ability to use his fastball far more than he showed in his appearance vs. UK.

Projection:  This year Beal has been used as a reliever by South Carolina coach Ray Tanner.  Beal definitely has the pedigree to start and I think that next year Beal will become USCe’s Friday night starter.  Much of Beal’s professional value will fall on his ability to develop another serviceable off-speed pitch.  His curveball and slider/cutter are solid weapons, but at the next level a passable changeup or split is usually needed for one to consistently work through a lineup three or four times.  Obviously, scouts are already aware of Beal, as he was drafted in the eighth round last year, so those actually in the business see the potential.  If all goes well for Beal (continued development, no injury issues) I could see him being a 1^st round talent in 2014.