By Frankie Piliere
There are always safe picks in the draft. Those picks may not have the most upside but there’s a good chance that you know exactly what you’re getting. Wade Miley, a 6-foot-2 lefty I got a good look at in the Cape over the summer, fits that mold perfectly.
Miley has been a strikeout pitcher with Southeastern Louisiana, and although I don’t expect him to be that type of pitcher as a pro, it does show his advanced feel for pitching is just overwhelming college hitters.
He’s not the most dazzling pitcher in terms of stuff but he’ll give someone a very safe pitching prospect in the top 5 rounds of the 2007 draft. Check out his scouting report after the jump…
Wade Miley, LHP - Wareham Gatemen (Southeastern Louisiana)
Present/Future Grades
Fastball - 50/55
Slider - 55/55
Changeup - 50/50
Command - 55/55
Physical Description - Strongly built, well proportioned frame. Looks durable with a thick lower half and broad shoulders. Lacks big projection but has room to grow in lower half. Looks like Jarrod Washburn.
Fastball - Not overpowering, sits at 88-89 MPH, bumps 91. Produces some late cut with across body throwing motion. Looks to be throwing harder and has plus command of his fastball. Runs it on lefties with two-seamer, works both corners. Doesn’t miss bats with the heat but hitters can’t square it.
Slider - Good, sweeping lefty breaking ball, already a plus pitch. 11-5 break and very tough on left-handers. Throws it at 78-81 but takes off and puts on occassionally. Sharp, late action, throws in any count. Looks like it’s coming from behind lefty’s back, likes to drop down on it occassionally. Strikeout pitch. Slurvy at times.
Changeup - Average differential at 75-77 MPH but doesn’t fool many to make it a swing and miss pitch. Telegraphs, turns hand over and slows his arm speed. Very dangerous pitch for him and frequently catches a lot of plate. His across body motion produces plus fade but he’ll need to spot this pitch much more consistently and sell it more. Needs to locate better.
Mechanics - Clean arm action. Lacks great arm speed but looks smooth and lacks major mechanical flaws. Throws across his body slightly, making him tough on lefties. Hides the ball well. Pitches from high-3/4 arm slot. No windup, uses lower body and arm just follows.
Notes - Won’t be overpowering but can compete at a high level with pitchability and command. Pitches to all four quadrants and already has plus command. Gets, the ball throws the ball, gets in a groove and has low pitch counts. Strike thrower, willing to pitch to contact. Will always be tough on lefties. Must develop his third pitch. Shows good presence.
Adjusted Overall Future Potential: 54
Present Group: P, Future Group: C
Projected Role: 4th starter
Draft Projection: 3rd-4th round pick
Overall Comparison: Nate Robertson (with better command)
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8 responses so far ↓
1 the red baron // Apr 25, 2008 at 2:31 am
Great report, as always. One thing I’m a little curious about that I would like to see you include a bit more often: is this guy more groundball or flyball oriented?
I’m sure sometimes you can’t tell based on just what you see from a guy in a given outing, but I always find it instructive to know how this guy is going to generate most of his outs.
Thanks again for the consistently top notch work.
2 Scooter // Apr 25, 2008 at 11:00 am
Frankie -
Do you think more teams are looking at wood-bat-league performance as a way to gauge how a college pitcher will transition to the pros?
Damon Oppenheimer seems to do this - and recently has had success with guys like George Kontos and David Robertson (2006 CCL MVP)
3 The Questioner // Apr 25, 2008 at 11:39 am
Good report.
Question…Frankie if you scout for the Rangers how in the hell do they allow you to be a contributor to this website where anyone from your casual fan to other teams baseball ops departments and scouts can read your reports? If you scout for a MLB organization how can you also write for a website at the same time?
Or does Texas have no clue you do this?
4 fpiliere44 // Apr 25, 2008 at 2:51 pm
The Questioner,
I’m not full-time, and I will not ever be providing information of any kind on the level (independent) that I cover for them. It’s been cleared that I can write, just not on the leagues I cover for them.
I’m not at all involved in minor league or amateur scouting, just the indy leagues. And, yes, they are very aware. It’d only be an issue if I was posting the same stuff here that I was giving them or making statements on behalf of them.
Glad you asked though; I’ve gotten that question before and it can seem odd, I know.
Not to worry though, I’m not doing this under the cover of night or anything like that, lol.
And you must be a Scout.com reader if you knew I was with Texas. Glad to see you here.
As for the first question, I think you are dead on Scooter. It’s an outstanding look at hitters and pitchers. Pitchers you take with a grain of salt because the hitters are transitioning but some pitches really translate well against wood and that shows up.
FP
5 The Questioner // Apr 25, 2008 at 3:12 pm
Thanks for clearing that up Frankie. I was a bit confused.
Do you have plans to work full time with a team one day? What else do you do for money other than scout.com, advertisement money here, and the Rangers? You still in college?
6 fpiliere44 // Apr 25, 2008 at 3:26 pm
No problem. That’s the goal yeah…unless this really takes off, which it really appears it already is. So, we’ll see.
Send me an email at my frankie@saberscouting.com email. I just don’t want to clog up the comments section. I’d be very glad to discuss this. Big ego alert…I like to talk about myself, lol.
FP
7 Tracking Arizonans in MLB draft | AZ Sports Hub - Arizona Sports - Blogs - Radio - Forums // Jun 5, 2008 at 5:51 pm
[…] Full Scouting Report […]
8 BaseBallstotheWall » Shot in the Dark: LHP Wade Miley // Dec 14, 2009 at 11:35 am
[…] across his body, which is a recipe for pitching injury everywhere. Both Baseball-Intellect and Saberscouting do an excellent job of breaking down the pros and cons to Miley’s approach to pitching. […]
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