Donald "DJ" Snelton, LHP. 6'6", 215 lbs. DOB: 5/29/1992.
College: 5-2, 2.15, 58.2 IP, 19 BB, 42 K.
Rookie AZL: 3-1, 1.57, 34.1 IP, 13 BB, 39 K, GO/AO= 2.37.
Snelton was drafted in the 9'th round of the 2013 draft out of Minnesota. I liked him a lot better than a higher ranked Gophers' pitcher, Tom Windle, who was drafted much higher, so I was surprised to see DJ fall to round 9 and was happy the Giants grabbed him.
Snelton has an over-the-top delivery that maximizes his height advantage and sends his pitches toward the plate on a sharp downward plane. The FB sits low 90's and has reached 94. His secondary stuff is reputed to be not as advanced as his FB. I am not so sure. I found a video summary of a 1 hitter he pitched against Ohio St on April 7, 2013. The last pitch of that game was a sharply downward breaking curveball that struck out the left-handed batter. I also saw a pitch that looked like a splitter that dropped off the table. In that game alone, Snelton made 7 fielding plays and the lone hit was an infield single that went off his glove. The downward plane I saw on the video, combined with all those come backers and the GO/AO in Arizona all point to him being an fairly extreme GB pitcher.
Arizona is way too low a starting point for a good pitcher from a major college program. The problem for the Giants is where do you put all of these pitchers? It's like they need an extra short season team and an extra A ball team! I'm thinking we'll see Snelton in the Augusta rotation in 2014, but man, it's a crowded field!
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Hey Doc, I just watched the video you're talking about. I'd seen it before, but I didn't watch it far enough to see the clips of him pitching. I thought it was just an interview! The curve is a big one, pretty impressive. And I see the pitch you're talking about that looks like a split as well. Dropped low and away from a righty... good stuff. I don't know if you heard it, but the announcers did ask DJ about his elbow and whether it had been "cranky" lately. Wonder if he had some problems last season? As for the Augusta rotation, he was one guy I left out, although I could easily see him getting in over a Leenhouts or even Ysla for that matter, if the organization wanted to see Ysla in Salem-Keizer. You're right, it's a very crowded group, even down at that level.
ReplyDeleteAnother potential steal from the 2013 draft, right here.