Clarke Schmidt Stats & Scouting Report — College Baseball, MLB Draft, Prospects

BA Grade: 40/Medium

Track Record: The Yankees took Schmidt in 2017 knowing he&#39d need Tommy John surgery. He had the surgery, then made his pro debut late in the 2018 season. In 2019, he showed the potential the Yankees sought when they drafted him, and developed enough in 2020 at the alternate training site to make his big league debut in 2020. Schmidt strained his pitching elbow in the early days of spring training, which kept him out until a rehab appearance on July 26 and limited him to just 6.1 big league innings in 2021.

Scouting Report: At his best, Schmidt mixes an excellent two-seam fastball with a hard, low-80s curveball which rates as the best in the system. He also added a slider this season to give him more options and a more natural pairing with his sinker. The slider checks in at around 86 mph on average and is understandably behind his curveball. Schmidt also has a four-seam fastball in roughly the same velo range as his sinker, as well as a changeup in the high 80s, but his two-seamer and curveball are his clear money pitches. The next step will be for his command and control to improve.

The Future: Because his workload was so small in 2021—just 44.1 innings between the minors and majors—it is hard to envision Schmidt as a viable rotation candidate in 2022. It is more likely he&#39ll either head to Triple-A or be utilized as a multi-inning option out of the bullpen.