| Player: George Klassen |
| School: Minnesota Position(s): RHP |
| Height: 6’2″ Weight: 170 lbs. Bats: Right Throws: Right |
| Pitches: Fastball: 96-102, Running action despite elite velo. Good downhill plane. Genuine plus-plus potential Slider: 83-87, inconsistent shape, sometimes looks more like a curve, sometimes more slider shape. Really lacks feel and command, but shape could make it above-average eventually given sharp late break with plenty of horizontal movement. Changeup: Very rarely used, not enough to evaluate. |
Delivery/Mechanics: Plenty of athleticism in delivery and good body control. Arm and head VERY whippy leading to real command issues. 3/4 slot with mild arm bend. Hips can get stiff and the arm can fight against the body missing wildly arm side far too often. Command and delivery scream reliever future. https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js |
| Other: As of 4/24/23, pitched in 21 college games with 13 starts and only 46.1 innings. More walks than strikeouts, 13 HBP and 6.99 ERA. In 2022, just 7.2 IP and 14 BB, 7 HBP, and 3 WP. Tommy John surgery in 2021. |
| Summary: Anytime a guy hits triple digits with regularity, it opens eyes, but there are genuine command concerns with Klassen. A guy with a truly elite fastball and quality slider should not have more walks than strikeouts, but Klassen does. There will naturally be plenty of Ben Joyce comps based on the command concerns and fastball over 100, but Joyce was more polished even with his many concerns. Klassen is absolutely worth an early day two pick based purely on upside, but it will truly be a high risk pick. He has not put up the numbers of a high pick, but the arm talent can’t be ignored. Would need to land with an organization willing to be patient. |
Three Quarter Slot
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