Pittsburgh Pirates Draft: Jack Leiter vs Jordan Lawlar
By Noah Wright
Jack Leiter
Leiter is one of Vanderbilt’s aces alongside Rocker. Leiter has pitched 64.1 innings this season, posting an excellent 2.10 ERA, 3.27 FIP and 0.88 WHIP. Leiter has gotten a ton of strikeouts. He’s struck out 41.7% of all the batters he has faced this year. He leads all pitchers in the SEC Conference in strikeouts and is 4th in opponent on-base average (.121).
Leiter’s fastball has looked great this season. Once a pitch that only averaged out in the lower-90s is now a pitch he’s topping out in the triple digits in. Overall, he’s averaged out in the 90-95 MPH range.
The pitch went from a solid offering with above-average potential to a 70-grade offering by MLB Pipeline. To go with his four-seamer, he has a 12-6 curveball and slider. Both of these pitches grade out as above average with his curve coming in with a 60-grade and his slider coming in with a 55-grade. He also will throw a change-up, the fourth offering with above-average potential.
However, Leiter has suffered from some control issues. He’s walked 11.4% of batters he has faced. Home runs have also been an issue with Leiter. He has surrendered 9 home runs for a 1.26 HR/9 rate.