Burl Carraway

The top college reliever in the class, Carraway has explosive stuff from the left side and, depending on the day, looks like he could be a late-inning reliever in MLB right now. A wiry athlete at 6-foot, 173 pounds, Carraway explodes off the rubber with a fast arm and a crossfire delivery that adds deception. His fastball regularly sits 96-98 mph with spotty control, which is actually an attribute because it makes hitters very uncomfortable in the box against him. That’s especially true for lefties, who struck out in 33 of 64 plate appearances against Carraway last year. He also has a knee-buckling curveball in the mid-70s with 1-to-7 shape and sharp biting action. Carraway gets away with below-average control because he generates so many whiffs outside the strike zone, but more advanced hitters will be able to stand in the box and take those pitches. The timing of his release point is inconsistent, and the violence and effort in his delivery don’t help. Carraway comes with plenty of risk due to his control issues and the poor track record of college relievers, but he could be a quick mover to a big league bullpen if he can improve his strike-throwing.