Keury Mella has been getting a taste of the major leagues for the past four years. Now that he is up again, let’s get to know Mr. Mella.
- Born: August 2, 1993
- B/T: Right/Right
- 6’2″, 230-lbs
- Signed by the San Francisco Giants in 2012 out of the Dominican Republic
The Numbers
His raw numbers are listed above courtesy of baseball-reference.com. Let’s aggregate by year then focus on the important numbers for minor leaguers:
We saw some skill progress in 2018, and then backwards it sent in 2019. In particular, that BB% trend is worrisome.
Lefties hit him hard, so using him against righties only would be smart.
Throws that four-seamer most of the time, and increasingly his slider has become his main secondary pitch.
Here it is visually: He made progress in late 2017 and early 2018, and then AAA undid the progress. He simply hasn’t shown dominance at that level yet.
The Scouts
- Rotowire: Not on their Top 400.
- BaseballHQ: Not on their Top 100.
- Fangraphs: Not on their Top 120.
- Fantasy Six Pack: Not on their dynasty list.
- Prospects365: Not on Ray Butler’s Top 200.
- Imaginary Brick Wall: Not on the Top 487.
- Fantrax: Not on the Top 250.
Warnings
He walks too many.
He hasn’t mastered AAA hitters, yet alone major leaguers.
Conclusion
A starter in the minors, he doesn’t have the pitch mix to maintain that job in the major leagues at this time other than as a spot start here or there. But if he can get the walks under control, that fastball could work nicely in the bullpen. Against righties.