Prospect Profiles: Jason Knapp, Van Worley, and Mike Stutes

To follow up on my scouting report of Phillies pitching prospect Kyle Drabek, we now will look at a couple other Philly pitching prospects: Jason Knapp and Van Worley. To read the Mike Stutes scouting report, you will need to sign up for the Baseball-Intellect Newsletter.

Jason Knapp | RHP | Age – 19 | Single-A Lakewood | Drafted – Round 2 (71), 2008

Knapp has cooled off after a blazing start in which he struck out over 40% of the hitters faced in his first four starts. He’s been hittable recently and his control has deserted him as well.

As a prospect, Knapp is one of the highest upside pitchers in the Phillies farm system. At 19, he’s shown a quality three-pitch mix that starts with his mid-90’s fastball. The secondary offerings are inconsistent, however, in both command and quality.

Mechanics

*Credit to boogiefeev and the MLB Scouting Bureau

Knapp’s mechanics make him more of an armsy thrower, but he’s cleaned up a few of his flaws since being drafted. On the left is Knapp during one of his April starts, while on the right is Knapp’s draft video. This isn’t the best comparison clip ever, but we’re still able to spot a couple things. First, the elbow doesn’t get as high in 2009 as it did in his draft video. I slow down the key frames where this occurs. His throwing arm is more a mirror of his glove-side arm in 2009. Knapp is slightly late with his throwing arm, which could add more stress to his shoulder, but it’s the tradeoff he makes for plus velocity.

A couple other differences I detect are a longer stride, better extension out in front at finish, and better overall timing. One question Knapp will have to answer is, can he consistently repeat his mechanics?

There are many that feel Knapp’s future will be in the bullpen, but that is far from certain. His future will really be dependent on the progress he makes with his secondary offerings and whether he can harness his control, but if everything breaks right, Knapp is a potential No. 2 starter.

Van Worley | RHP | Age – 21 | Double-A Reading | Drafted – Round 3, 2008

*Credit to the MLB Scouting Bureau

Worley, a 3rd round pick in last year’s draft is of the Long Beach State school of mechanics as many of their pitchers seem to have similar mechanical attributes. In Worley’s case, his mechanics are very similar to guys like Andrew Liebel and Brett Lorin — the staying tall throughout the wind-up, the exaggerated shoulder tilt, the somewhat longish arm action, and the high 3/4 release point.

Worley features two fastballs — a two-seamer in the 87 – 89 range that features some sink and a little arm side run and a four-seamer that clocks in between 91 and 93 with solid life. He also features a solid, but inconsistent curveball. His change-up is a below average offering at the moment as he needs to work on maintaining his arm speed when throwing it.

Worley doesn’t have a problem throwing strikes, but he needs to improve his overall command because he leaves too many hittable pitches over the plate.

Overall, some see Worley as a potential back of the rotation starter, while others see him as being a power arm out of the bullpen. His ground ball tendencies will play well in Philly’s bandbox ballpark.

Mike Stutes | RHP | Age – 22 | Double-A Reading | Drafted – Round 11, 2008

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