22) Pat Corbin, 7/19/89 - LHSP, Advanced Rookie Ball
4 Wins, 2 Losses. 46.1 IP, 5.05 ERA, 46 K/11 BB
Ranking in a Nutshell: Pat Corbin's stuff and athleticism have received excellent reviews from scouts, Baseball America, and the Halos' own Tom Kotchman, who actually signed Corbin. I have no reason to question their judgment. His smooth mechanics (which you can view here) and tall, slim frame offer a ton of projection, and he's already showing improvement in velocity and control as a pro. On the other side of the ledger are some ‘hitability' issues that dampened his success at Chipola Junior College and in the Pioneer League, where he put up an underwhelming 5.05 ERA and yielded 11.5 hits per nine innings.
Track Record: As stated above, underwhelming. On the other hand, he did fan a batter an inning with the Owlz, kept the walks to a minimum, and showed some groundball tendencies, all good things that did not show up in the results. We won't really see what he's got from a stat standpoint until after a 100 innings in the Midwest League.
Win-the-Lottery-Ceiling: Corbin has the potential to package a plus fastball with Joe Saunders-caliber offspeed stuff and groundball tendencies. With three promising pitches, he profiles as a mid to back of the rotation starter down the road, but is still a long, long ways away.
Scouting Report: (beneath the jump)
Baseball America states "Corbin's fastball currently ranges from 88-93, sitting at 90-91 with natural sink and either tailing or cutting action." That's a step up from the 85-89 Corbin hit regularly at Chipola, both in the pre-draft scouting video above and in scouting reports from tournaments, so his velocity is already increasing in pro ball. That bodes well for the hoped-for tick or two more to come.
Baseball America calls his breaking ball a "hard slurve" with potential, and Alex Eisenburg of www.baseball-intellect.com says his "changeup profiles as potential plus pitch...his arm action is conducive for a good change-up." Can't wait to get a look at him next year.