Eric Silva

Silva teamed with Gage Jump to give JSerra (Calif.) High one of the best high school pitching duos in the country this spring. After impressing during the fall with the Braves scout team, Silva touched 97 mph in a high-profile exhibition in the spring to enhance his draft stock and continued to pitch well throughout the high school season. Silva is a small-framed righthander who is undersized, but his stuff is plenty big. His fastball sits at 90-94 mph and touches 97 out of a clean delivery, and his fast arm speed allows him to reach that velocity without much effort. He throws his fastball for strikes and maintains his command deep into his starts. Silva complements his heater with a short slider in the low 80s that flashes above-average, and he occasionally throws a changeup in the mid 80s that is a little too firm. Silva stays in and around the zone and has impressive pitchability in addition to his stuff. Evaluators have concerns about Silva’s long-term durability with his size and how hard he throws. He began this season sitting 93-97 but tired as the year went on and finished sitting 90-93. Those concerns have many teams projecting Silva to the bullpen as a pro, although a few give him an outside chance to remain a starter. He is committed to UCLA and will be expensive to sign.