Bryan Price Report

There are some really cool blogs out there that focus on swing analysis, innovative stats to projects players stats, and some that give a bird's eye view of a player through a scouting perspective. ScoutingTheSally.com is one of those sites where Mike Newman focuses only on the top prospects that come through the South Atlantic League and writes a report on them. Be sure to click on the referenced link and check out that site.

Newman recently wrote up a report on Indians right-hander Bryan Price who he saw recently when he was pitching in the South Atlantic League. Here is the report, which is posted here with permission, though you can check out the original writeup on his site here.

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Bryan Price (6 IP, 1 ER, 2 H) - Recently dealt to the Cleveland in the Victor Martinez deal, I was able to watch him throw earlier in the season. The 48th overall draft pick in the 2008 amateur draft, Price entered the 2009 season as a prospect with ever increasing hype and projection even as a 22-year old college product.

Physique and Athleticism: Listed at 6'4", 210 pounds, Price looked smaller on the mound than his listed height. 210 pounds seemed about right with him having little size through the waist and shoulders. That lack of size leaves me wondering whether he will be able to successfully add additional muscle to his frame to increase his durability as he continues his transition from a college reliever to starter as a professional. Price's delivery was fluid and repeatable, and he rarely had to reach back for a little extra during this appearance.

Mound Presence: Rarely tested versus the Sand Gnats, Price was calm throughout and showed the ability to mix his pitches and throw them all for strikes. One obviously expects a more polished product when watching an older, major college pitcher in the Sally, and Price did not disappoint.

Fastball: In reading about Price prior to his start, I came to the park expecting to see some serious glove popping due to reports of his touching 95 MPH. In truth, Price sat at 87-88 for most of the evening touching 90-91 a handful of times. From my vantage point, the offering did not have much movement, but his ability to hit a dime on both corners led to his being able to expand the strike zone at least six inches on either side of the plate leaving Sand Gnats hitters fuming. It was a solid average offering, but he simply did not have the velocity on the pitch I was expecting to see.

Slider: At 83-84 which flashed plus with its biting movement down and away to right-handed hitters, Price used the offering as an out pitch and it was just too much for Sally hitters at this point in their development. Throughout the appearance, the pitch was consistently down in the zone and he simply did not make a mistake with the offering.

Change up: A solid average third pitch, the 82-84 offering was spotted at will by Price who threw the change consistently for strikes. With good arm action and location, the only thing missing was more movement which would have moved the pitch to plus.

With one of the more impressive outings I've seen in the Sally this season, Price toyed with Sand Gnats hitters and was the "man among boys" he was expected to be as an older, high round pick. While leaving impressed with his repertoire and feel for pitching, his being 22 and dominating younger competition forced me to view the outing from a half full perspective. When viewed separately, his three pitch mix is impressive, but Price is still a pitcher who topped out at 91 MPH with two breaking balls of identical velocity. He profiles as a back of the rotation starter for me at this point who may be able to exceed expectations with increased size and pitch movement.

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