Blake Burkhalter

Burkhalter was one of the most effective relievers in the country, as he piled up strikeouts and helped pitch the Tigers to Omaha with a plus fastball and plus slider. His 16 saves were second most in the country. He finished with a sparkling 71-to-7 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 46.1 innings. His 93-96 mph four-seam fastball has touched 98. Thanks to his short stature (6-foot), its flat plane and its life, he can throw it for swings and misses up in the zone, but he really wants to finish off hitters with a truly diabolical hard (85-91 mph) slider/cutter. It has modest movement, but its power, especially at its upper velocity range, makes for a lot of feeble swings. He lives on the outer edge of the plate down and away from righthanded hitters. Lefthanded hitters have a better chance, as his slider isn’t as effective against them, but he has developed a mid-80s fringe-average changeup to keep them honest. With two plus pitches, Burkhalter is one of the better available college relievers in this year’s class.