Kaden Waechter

IMPROVEMENT AREAS

• Evaluate sustained performance with level and age context
• Review role fit, health, roster status, and organization need

SCOUT REPORT

Doug Waechter grew up in the Tampa-St. Pete area then went on to pitch for parts of six seasons in the big leagues, five of them with the hometown Rays after they took him in the third round of the 1999 Draft. His son, Kaden, has a chance to go earlier than that, a product of the same Jesuit High School in Tampa that produced future big league right-handers like Brad Radke and Lance McCullers Jr. Waechter offers an exciting combination of MLB family ties, projection in a 6-foot-3 frame, athleticism and feel for pitching. His fastball typically registers average velocities, sitting around 93 mph, though he can reach back for 95-96 mph, and there could be more in the tank to come. It plays up because it has good life to it, and he can command it to both sides of the plate. His top secondary offering right now is a slider that works best as an out pitch in the 84-86 mph range. He'll crank it up a bit and turn the pitch into an upper-80s cutter, and he has some feel for a changeup, though he can drop his elbow on it at times. All of Waechter's arsenal comes from an easy and repeatable delivery. He's willing to throw all of his offerings at any point, pitching backwards when he needs to, filling up the zone consistently. Ceiling and pitchability don't often come in one package, and that's why scouts will be watching this Florida State recruit very carefully in the spring.