Born: February 17, 1992
Santo Domingo, DR
Height: 6-4
Weight: 230
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Drafted: Not drafted
How Acquired: International
free agent (March 2012)

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2014 Top 40 Season in Review

Released (March 2017)

Physical Description: Looks all of his listed height and weight. Body is on the soft side with a large lower half.  

Mechanics: Rigid mechanics, with a stiff landing leg that results in him finishing off-balance and falling off to the first-base side. High three-quarters arm slot. Does not incorporate his lower half efficiently into his delivery. Has the tendency to drift at times, losing his line to the plate. Struggles to repeat his delivery and release point.  

Fastball: 91-94 mph. Has topped out at 100 mph according to multiple sources. Potential plus offering. Tends to lose velocity as he works deeper into games. Fastball shows sink in the lower velocity range. Flat and straight when elevated. Below-average command.  

Breaking ball: Multiple. Has tried throwing both a curveball and slider since he entered the organization. Seemed to have settled into a curveball in the 76-81 mph range, but showed a promising slider at 84-87 mph at the Fall Instructional League in 2014. Curveball had 11-5 break, but was inconsistent and lacked tight rotation. Showed some depth and fringe-average potential. Slider showed solid depth through the zone and two-plane movement. Will miss bats. Offering has plus potential.  

Changeup: 84-87 mph. Inconsistent from outing to outing. Throws with similar arm speed to his fastball, but can slow his body down at times. At its rare best, shows splitter-like movement with the bottom falling out of it. Solid-average potential if he carries over the pitch he showed during fall instructs 2014.  

Career Notes: Agreed to sign with the Giants in 2011 for $400,000 using the name Jeffrey Tapia, but his deal was voided after MLB’s background investigation and he was declared ineligible to sign for one year.  

Summation: Likely best suited to a bullpen role due to lack of command and inconsistent secondary offerings. Out of the bullpen, stuff could play up and he would only have to focus on developing one of his secondary offerings. If his command takes a big step forward along with his secondary offerings, potential mid-rotation starter, but his odds of reaching that ceiling are low.