Pittsburgh Pirates MLB Draft Prospects: RHP Jack Leiter
The MLB draft is still over 11 weeks away, but there is already speculation as to who the Pittsburgh Pirates will take number one overall. With things starting to get back to normal, scouting will be easier this season, and the Pirates will have their pick of any top prospect they want. In a zoom call this week, General Manager Ben Cherrington noted that the good news around this year's draft class is they get to see them play. However, with the college season in full swing, two names have emerged as front runners to be that number one overall pick and both are from Vanderbilt. Starting pitchers Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker are on top of everyone's draft boards as the two battle to be the Pirate's number one overall pick.
For our first edition of Pittsburgh Pirates MLB Draft prospects, we are going to focus on the younger of the two pitchers, Jack Leiter. Leiter is in his second season with Vanderbilt and is off to one of the hottest starts in all of college baseball this season. Through nine starts for the Commodores, Leiter has gone 7-1 with a 1.49 ERA over 60.1 innings of work and has the lowest ERA on the team. He is much more mature on the mound than he looks, and Vanderbilt head coach Tim Corbin acknowledges that maturity. "Jack is mature, intentional, and predictable in his habits on and off the field, " said Corbin. "Although he is just a second-year player, he operates like he has been in the program for 3-4 seasons." Today, we look at Leiter's work on the field and see how he would fit into the Pirates system if he is taken number one overall.
From Drafted to Commodore
From the time he got to high school, Jack Leiter was no stranger to Major League Baseball. His uncle, Mark Leiter pitched 11 seasons in the Majors and his Cousin0, Mark Leiter JR., pitched two seasons. However, the most famous Leiter MLB player was Jack's father Al Leiter, who pitched 1987-2005 with four different MLB teams. However, Jack Leiter is trying to outdo all of them, and he is no stranger to pitching in front of Major League scouts. He pitched at the Delbarton Prep School and was one of the top prep pitchers in the country, striking out 95 batters in 57 innings of work as a senior. Because of his work at the high school level, Leiter was drafted in the 20th round of the 2019 MLB draft by the New York Yankees. However, it was not enough to pull Leiter away from Vanderbilt, and he ended up honoring his commitment to become a Commodore.
He was a member of the starting rotation right from the get-go as a freshman but faced an unusual welcome to college baseball. The pandemic cut his season short and only allowed him to make four collegiate appearances, three of those being starts. However, he made the most of his short time on the field going 2-0 with a 1.72 ERA during those four appearances. His walk rate was a little higher than you would like to see from an elite talent at 13.3%, but he made up for it by striking out batters at a 36.6% clip. However, it seemed like the only way batters could get on base against him was via the walk as he allowed a .167 opponent batting average (5-30) when he was on the mound. He had some work to do on his control, but other than that he was developing into an elite college pitcher.
However, Leiter has taken his game to the next level so far in 2021 and actually surpassed Rocker on many of the Draft boards. Leiter leads the Commodores with his 1.49 ERA in nine starts and has held opponents to just a .184 opponent average and has really found control of his strikeout pitch. He has set down 102 batters in 60.1 innings of work while walking 22 batters. He has lowered his walk rate to 10.5% and is getting more command of the strike zone at just 21 years of age. His best performance, however, came on March 20th when he threw the first no-hitter in Vanderbilt history. Leiter walked the first batter of the game and then recorded 27 consecutive outs, 16 of those being strikeouts. He was efficient, throwing 124 pitches while putting 81 of them in the strike zone. He has shown he can be an elite pitcher at the collegiate level, and it's up to the Pirates to see if that elite-level pitching will transfer to professional ball.
Where Would Leiter Fit In
At the time he would be drafted by the Pirates, Leiter would be 21-years-old, which is on the older side for a prospect. However, he has a good handle on his stuff, so he would likely head to Low-A to start his career and work his way up. His fastball works routinely in the 95-97 mile per hour range and he has a nasty slider to build off of. These are two pitches that the Pirates will really want to focus on, especially in his early years, to give him the confidence to throw the ball. The advantage that anyone picked in the 2021 draft will have over a 2020 prospect is that if they can sign quick enough, they will jump right into professional games. This would be key for Leiter to get him started early, so he has a chance to move through the system quicker.
If he can get into Bradenton by the end of July, he will have a chance to make at least five starts and show what he can do against professional hitters. This would set him up for a move to Advanced-A Greensboro by the end of 2021 or the start of the 2022 season. As for a timetable on when he would most likely be in Pittsburgh, I would expect him to move quickly and be ready by either 2024 and 2025. The biggest things he needs to work on are his control, and developing a third pitch. His walk rate is a little higher than you would like to see from a top prospect, and if he can get more of a handle on the strike zone, that would go a long way in raising his stock. One thing that could help him is getting a third plus pitch to use off of his fastball and slider that will help generate more swings and misses.
Leiter has a short quick motion to the plate and reminds me a lot of Gerrit Cole in his early years with the Pirates. The Pirates really don't have that premier power pitcher, and Leiter could be that guy for the Pirates system. He may not be the biggest physical specimen, standing at 6-1, 205 pounds, but he has a good understanding of how to be a pitcher rather than just being a hard thrower. This is something the Pirates desperately need, and Leiter could fit right into a future rotation with a guy like Quinn Priester. Before the college baseball season began, I was pretty even on both Leiter and fellow Commodore Kumar Rocker. However, after seeing them both pitch, I am leaning more towards Leiter with the number one pick. However, there is a lot of time for this battle to heat up, or have some new guys come into the #1 pick talk. For now, we will sit back and watch Leiter work as he continues to train for the MLB draft.
The Pittsburgh Pirates (11-11) are off today, but return to action tomorrow night when they host the Kansas City Royals (13-7) at 6:35 pm. Tyler Anderson (2-2, 3.92) looks to continue his string of holding the opposition to under three runs as he takes on Jakob Junis (1-0, 3.71) for the Royals. You can watch the game live on AT&T Sportsnet, listen on 93.7 The Fan, or follow along with us on Twitter at @Buccos_Cove.
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