Major League Baseball is a copycat league, and every team is desperate for the next edge. The AL pennant-winning Tampa Bay Rays may have found one on the pitching side, a way to rack up financially sustainable wins. The formula: limit walks, limit home runs, and pair passable stuff with quality defense, ideally alongside some unique trait beyond command. That recipe let Nick Martinez throw 180 innings of 3.10 ERA ball with just a 15% strikeout rate, while Mariners arms like Bryan Woo and George Kirby lacked the defensive backing to get the same results.
Today, I'm highlighting five college pitchers who, with a quality defense behind them, could outperform expectations and deliver the kind of value on the margins that organizations are so eager to find.
Caden McDonald, Florida
McDonald doesn't just post a .612 xwOBACON at the plate. He also pitches, and his location grades for the Gators …