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Matt Ager
Matt Ager won’t be the only 2024 draft pick to show up on this list. The Pirates took the right-hander out of UC Santa Barbara in the sixth round of the MLB draft, but Ager was ranked much higher than where he ended up. MLB Pipeline ranked him as a top 150 draft prospect, coming in at 135.Baseball America was even more bullish on his talent, ranking him 104th in their pre-draft talent rankings.
At the end of 2023, Ager looked like he was trending upward. However, he only posted a 4.02 ERA, 1.39 WHIP, and 2.11 K:BB ratio throughout his final college season. He worked both as a starter and closer, starting nine games but also saving 11. He walked 9.9% of opponents with a 20.8% K%; luckily, he was good at limiting home runs with an 0.57 HR/9 rate.
Ager’s fastball sits around 92 MPH, but he has shown the ability to top out around 95-96 at times. Along with his fastball, Ager’s most used secondary offering is his slider. His second breaking pitch is a curveball, and he’ll also mix in a changeup. He’s shown a strong ability to repeat his delivery, which should help with his control in the long run.
While Ager isn’t a hard-throwing pitching prospect right now, he has the potential to add more heat. He is a 6’6”, 225-pound pitcher at 21 years old, so he has room for some added muscle. A few additional ticks of velocity could do Ager a lot of good, and he’ll get a chance to do so next year for Bradenton.