Aaron Poreda, lhp, White Sox

June 7, 2007
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2007 MLB Draft B-T: L-L
Ht: 6-6. Wt.: 240.
Birthdate: 10/1/1986.
School: San Francisco
Class: Jr.
Previously Drafted: Never drafted.


THROUGH THE YEARS IN BASEBALL AMERICA
2007
• Poreda ranks fourth among California prospects.
• Jim Callis said in a draft chat that San Francisco is among the teams interested in Poreda.
• Poreda was No. 43 in our Midseason Update: College Top 50 Prospects.
• Poreda showed an electric arm and good command in a showdown against UC Riverside's James Simmons.
• In our early draft preview, Poreda ranked No. 46 on our College Top 100 Prospects list.
• Poreda was a preseason West Coast Conference all-conference player and the No. 4 draft prospect in the WCC.
2006
• In a chat, Will Kimmey pegged Poreda as a possible 2007 first rounder.

SCOUTING REPORT
Poreda wasn't on the radar screen in high school; he focused more on football as a defensive end/tight end. He did pitch a bit, even tossing a no-hitter, but was awkward and had suspect arm action. In three seasons at San Francisco working with pitching coach Greg Moore, however, he has developed into a first-round candidate and one of the nation's hardest-throwing lefthanders. Poreda works off the fastball almost as much as UC Riverside's James Simmons (No. 47), and like Simmons, it's his only above-average pitch. While his fastball was flat and 89-90 mph in his 2007 opener, he has been consistently in the low 90s since then, touching 96-97 and regularly hitting 94. He throws plenty of strikes (though he lacks true command), and with his 6-foot-6, 240-pound frame, he should prove durable. He doesn't pitch as downhill as he should at his size, in part because of his low three-quarters arm slot. Poreda's arm action and lower slot make his breaking ball a fringe-average pitch at best, though it has improved. He has the makings of a changeup but hasn't thrown it much, sticking to his fastball. He had experimented with a higher slot to aid his breaking ball, but the move cost his fastball some of its late life and was back to his old slot.

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