Indians Top 100 Prospects: #46 Neil Wagner

46. Neil Wagner - Right-handed Pitcher
Born: 01/01/1984 - Height: 6'0" - Weight: 195 - Bats: Right - Throws: Right

Year	Age	Team	Lvl	W	L	ERA	G	GS	SV	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	BB/9	K/9	WHIP
2006	22	Mahoning Vy	A-	0	1	1.39	26	0	17	32.1	16	5	1	9	50	2.2	13.9	0.74
2007	23	Lake County	A	1	4	3.68	34	0	11	44.0	41	18	3	11	49	2.3	10.0	1.18
	23	Kinston	A+	0	0	3.00	16	0	0	24.0	17	8	2	6	18	2.3	6.8	0.96
2008	24	Kinston	A+	3	6	4.50	41	0	3	62.0	67	31	1	21	81	3.0	11.8	1.42
	24	Akron	AA	0	2	3.60	7	0	0	10.0	10	4	1	4	11	3.6	9.9	1.40
		Career		4	13	3.45	124	0	31	172.1	151	66	8	51	209	2.6	10.9	1.17

History:  Wagner was a 21st round pick in the 2005 Draft out of North Dakota State University.  He signed late in 2005, so he did not make his professional debut until 2006 at Mahoning Valley where he racked up 17 saves and posted a 1.39 ERA while holding opposing hitters to a .143 average striking out 50 hitters in 32 innings.  After starting last year at advanced Single-A Kinston and putting up an 8.73 ERA in nine April appearances, he settled in the rest of the way to put up a 3.44 ERA in 32 appearances from May until mid-August when he was called up to Double-A Akron.  At Akron he was sensational in limited time going 2-2 with a 2.75 ERA in 11 combined appearances in the regular season and playoffs.  He also went out the Arizona Fall League and pitched well (0-1, 5.59 ERA, 13 games, 19.1 IP, 18 H, 12 BB, 9 K). 

Strengths & Opportunities:  Outside of Adam Miller, Wagner arguably has the most explosive fastball in the system that sits at 93-95 MPH and touches 98 MPH.  He shows good control (career 2.6 BB/9 rate) and the ability to put hitters away with his dominating fastball (career 10.9 K/9).  Wagner closed in college, so he has the experience handling late inning pressure situations and is mentally tough. His late season progress was a byproduct of him sticking to his plan as well as some tinkering with his delivery where he lowered his arm slot a little bit and started throwing exclusively from the stretch which improved his velocity and allowed him to be more consistent with his release point. 

While Wagner controls his fastball well and can blow it by hitters, the key to him becoming a bona fide relief prospect will be the development of at least one secondary pitch which he has struggled with at times.  He throws a slider and changeup, and is working on throwing them both for strikes to better set up his fastball and keep hitters off balance.  The results with the slider have been mixed to date, but the changeup showed some consistent improvement over the course of last season and by the end of the season it was a reliable pitch for him where he was throwing it for strikes and able to use it in any count.  It is more of a split-changeup because it has the drop of a splitter although is not a true splitter. 

Outlook:  If Wagner were a few years younger, he might rank a little higher on this list; however, now that he is 25 years old he is close to his ceiling as a pitcher.  He just needs an opportunity to prove himself at Double-A and Triple-A, and will get that chance this year as he will open the season in the bullpen at Double-A Akron. 

Photo courtesy of Ken Carr 

Neil Wagner MinorLeagueBaseball.com stats page 

Neil Wagner Baseball-Reference page 

Neil Wagner MinorLeagueSplits.com page 

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