Quick Looks: Boyd, DeSclafani, Montas

Matt Boyd (45 CV/50+ FV)
8/28 vs Blue Jays

Game Thoughts
• The 24-year-old lefty was very blahh in the start I saw.
• His fastball was 89-94 mph, straight and thrown high in the zone. It may even have a bit of “rise” to it
• His slider was 77-78 mph with 11-6 break and the only pitch he has which can create ground balls.
• His change was 78-80 mph and straight. It follows the same path as his fastball, but 10 mph slower. It eats up right-handed hitters.
• Finally, he threw a few curves which were at 69-72 mph with 11-6 break
• Boyd’s high fastball and change are going to give up some flyballs. Among starters with 40 IP, he has the 7th lowest GB% at 32.4%. He could end up with home run issues as he is this season with a 2.6 HR/9.
• He throwing away too many pitches which aren’t even near the strike zone. He gets into too many long at bats and ends up working from behind.
He lost a little velo as the game went on never getting over 93 mph on his fastball after the 3rd inning.

Final thoughts: I can see why the Blue Jays traded away the fly ball heavy pitcher. He would give up a bunch of home runs in Rogers Centre as he did in this start. I wish he had one good trait, but there isn’t one. Something needs to play up for him to be a reliable fantasy option. Right now, he is only good for spot starts in deep leagues in the right park.

 

Anthony DeSclafani (CV: 45/FV: 50)
7/29/15 vs Cardinals

Game Thoughts
• He has not improved since the last time I did a Quick Looks on him.
• The 25-year-old righty came at hitters with a basic 3/4 motion.
• He kept his pitches down in the zone.
• His fastballs were 89-93 mph. His 2-seamer broke down and was 89-91. The 91-93 mph 4-seamer broke release side. Both didn’t have a ton of movement and were tough to tell apart.
• His 1/7 slider was 86-89 and completely inconsistent. He hung a few which got crushed.
• He had a sharp, non-loopy 77-79 mph curve which just broke down in the zone.
• He also through what was labeled 86 mph a change. It was useless and rarely near the strike zone.
• The biggest issue with me is his fastballs and sliders, which make up ~86% of his pitches, are within 7 mph from the high (93 mph) to the low (86 mph). The way he was hanging sliders, they were getting crushed.

Final thoughts: Like Boyd, something needs to improve with DeSclafani. He needs some consistency with each pitch type and differentiation between the types. He needs to make the change or curve into a usable weapon.

 

Francelis Montas (CV: 50/FV: 60)
9/13 vs Twins
Game Thoughts
• I saw the 22-year-old righty throw three innings of relief.
• His fastball was between 95-98 mph with little movement. He can blow it by some hitters but not all of them. Additionally, he can’t always throw it for strikes as seen by his 46% Zone% with it.
• He had a plus 12/6 slider which he can throw for strikes (45% Zone%) or get some swinging strikes (17% SwStr%). The slider can be inconsistent at times and he can hang a few.
• He struggled with walks since he could get the fastball over.
• I based he his current and future values on his ability to be a closer. As a starter, I don’t think he has enough of an arsenal be effective. Reminds me of Kevin Gausman in that he can throw gas with a good breaker, but just those two pitches aren’t enough to be a successful starter.

Final thoughts: He can step in the bullpen now and be a nice closer, but the White Sox will look to see if he can make it as a starter. I am not sure he can with the two pitches and a fastball which only has speed.

 

Notes on process
I will continue to implement player grading on the scouting scales of 20-80. I will use Kiley McDaniels scale he discussed in this article.

Grade	Hitter	Starting Pitcher	Relief Pitcher	WAR
80	Top 1-2	#1 Starter	—-	7
75	Top 2-3	#1	—-	6
70	Top 5	#1/2	—-	5
65	All-Star	#2/3	—-	4
60	Plus	#3	High Closer	3
55	Above Avg	#3/4	Mid Closer	2.5
50	Avg Regular	#4	Low CL/High SU	2
45	Platoon/Util	#5	Low Setup	1.5
40	Bench	Swing/Spot SP	Middle RP	1
35	Emergency Call-Up	Emergency Call-Up	Emergency Call-Up	0
30	*Organizational	*Organizational	*Organizational	-1

I will give a value for where I think the pitcher could currently fit in on the average team (CV=current value) and where they could end up (FV=future value). I am sure I will disagree with some grades from others, but I am only looking at one game.

Note: If I say a pitch moves 11-5, it is from the pitcher’s perspective.