Stephen Clyne Stats & Scouting Report — College Baseball, MLB Draft, Prospects

Full name Stephen P. Clyne
Born 09/22/1984 in Parkland, FL
Profile Ht.: 6'2" / Wt.: 215 / Bats: S / Throws: R
School Clemson
Drafted in the 3rd round (123rd overall) by the New York Mets in 2007 (signed for $100,000).

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Clyne began experiencing arm trouble when he was still in high school, and in an effort to avoid surgery, elected to redshirt his freshman season in 2003. His arm never got back to normal, and he had Tommy John surgery, costing him all of 2004. It wasn't until last fall that he began to show the stuff that made him a coveted recruit. As a fifth-year senior, Clyne would create bidding interest among multiple teams if Clemson's season ended after the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament, but the Tigers were a lock to go to regional play, so Clyne will hope to make his money in the draft. He's shown the stuff to warrant a third- to fifth-round selection, with two hard pitches and the profile of a setup man or middle reliever in the big leagues. Clyne's fastball sits between 91-94 mph with plus sink at times, and his slider can be filthy, registering anywhere from 80-84 mph on radar guns. He has limited feel for his changeup, and Clyne has a tendency to pitch tentatively, and doesn't always seem to have conviction in his stuff. He's around the zone, with solid-average command.

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The Mets got Clyne cheap. As a redshirt senior, he had little bargaining power and signed for $100,000, by far the lowest signing bonus of the first three rounds of the 2007 draft. He redshirted as a freshman after having arm problems dating back his high school career, then missed 2004 with Tommy John surgery. But by 2007 he was Clemson's top reliever, allowing lefthander Daniel Moskos (the No. 4 overall pick by the Pirates in June) to move into the rotation. Clyne isn't far removed from the relievers New York drafted ahead of him, Eddie Kunz and Brant Rustich, as he throws hard, reaching up to 94 mph with his low-90s sinker. He also has a strikeout pitch in an above-average, two-plane slider that has depth and power in the low 80s. The Mets see Clyne as a setup man who should move quickly and believe he can reach that ceiling after seeing improvement since he signed. He has cleaned up his somewhat funky arm action a bit, and St. Lucie pitching coach Al Jackson worked on improving Clyne's delivery during instructional league to get all his energy moving toward the plate, rather than side to side. Both changes should improve his command. Mets coaches also are encouraged by the progress of his changeup, which has sink similar to that of his fastball. If he comes out throwing strikes in 2008, Clyne could speed through the system.