Alexander Vizcaino
| IP | 177 |
|---|---|
| ERA | 4.831 |
| WHIP | 1.435 |
| BB/9 | 3.915 |
| SO/9 | 9.356 |
- Full name Alexander Vizcaíno
- Born 05/22/1997 in San Cristobal, Dominican Republic
- Profile Ht.: 6'2" / Wt.: 160 / Bats: R / Throws: R
Top Rankings
Organization Prospect Rankings
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Fastball: 60. Slider: 50. Changeup: 70. Control: 55.
Track Record: Vizcaino signed for just $14,000 and began his career with three nondescript seasons, but he broke out in 2019 on the strength of a greatly improved changeup to go with his explosive fastball. The Yankees, impressed with his gains, brought him to their alternate training site in 2020 despite the fact he has yet to pitch above high Class A.
Scouting Report: Vizcaino is an elite athlete who is one of the fastest runners and highest jumpers in the Yankees’ system. He pairs that athleticism with a powerful right arm that generates upper-90s fastballs and a plus-plus changeup, which helped him strike out more than a batter per inning in 2019, Vizcaino’s slider was a point of focus at the alternate training site. Rather than change the pitch itself, the Yankees tweaked Vizcaino’s delivery with a bit of a hip turn to help him stay closed and on-line toward the plate. Those alterations helped him land his slider more consistently and play as an average pitch. Vizcaino throws all his pitches for strikes but still needs to add strength to his frame, which will help improve his durability.
The Future: After a summer facing more experienced hitters, he may open 2021 at Double-A. . -
TRACK RECORD: Vizcaino was signed out of the Dominican Republic as a 19-year-old, then posted three underwhelming seasons—two of which were spent mostly at Rookie-level Pulaski— before a greatly improved changeup allowed him to jump into the Yankees' pack of intriguing pitching prospects.
SCOUTING REPORT: Vizcaino opened the year as one of the most nondescript members of a talented pitching staff at low Class A Charleston. Once scouts got a look, however, they saw a fastball that had jumped into the mid-90s and was touching as high as 98 mph. More than that, his changeup was a true weapon that was getting swings and misses by the bushel. The pitch, thrown in the low 90s, was effective not for its separation from his fastball, but because it showed sharp dive that mimicked a split-fingered fastball and was effective against hitters from both sides of the plate. The next step will be to sharpen his slider, which is thrown in the low 80s with a spin rate that averaged around 2,500 revolutions per minute and varied from potentially solid-average to below-average.
THE FUTURE: After a month-long stint in the Florida State League, Vizcaino will return there in 2020 to continue working on sharpening his breaking ball. Improvement in that area will greatly improve his chances of staying in the rotation.
Minor League Top Prospects
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It used to be that a fastball-changeup righthander would be ticketed for the bullpen unless they could develop an average breaking ball. But Vizcaino may be able to succeed over longer outings even if his fringe-average slider doesn't improve. His changeup is that good, and unlike most changeups, it functions more like a split-finger fastball. Vizcaino's plus-plus, 90-91 mph changeup is a dastardly weapon, and it's hard with late drop. It looks like it's headed to the bottom of the strike zone before diving toward the dirt. Vizcaino's 94-98 mph fastball give him a second plus pitch. The development of his inconsistent fringe-average slider could help him turn into a mid-rotation starter. It's bigger, slower (82-84 mph) and he doesn't show confidence to throw it in tough counts.
Best Tools List
- Rated Best Changeup in the New York Yankees in 2020
Scouting Reports
-
Fastball: 60. Slider: 50. Changeup: 70. Control: 55.
Track Record: Vizcaino signed for just $14,000 and began his career with three nondescript seasons, but he broke out in 2019 on the strength of a greatly improved changeup to go with his explosive fastball. The Yankees, impressed with his gains, brought him to their alternate training site in 2020 despite the fact he has yet to pitch above high Class A. Vizcaino was dealt to the Cubs at the trade deadline along with OF Kevin Alcantara in exchange for 1B Anthony Rizzo.
Scouting Report: Vizcaino is an elite athlete who is one of the fastest runners and highest jumpers in the Yankees' system. He pairs that athleticism with a powerful right arm that generates upper-90s fastballs and a plus-plus changeup, which helped him strike out more than a batter per inning in 2019, Vizcaino's slider was a point of focus at the alternate training site. Rather than change the pitch itself, the Yankees tweaked Vizcaino's delivery with a bit of a hip turn to help him stay closed and on-line toward the plate. Those alterations helped him land his slider more consistently and play as an average pitch. Vizcaino throws all his pitches for strikes but still needs to add strength to his frame, which will help improve his durability.
The Future: After a summer facing more experienced hitters, he may open 2021 at Double-A. . -
Fastball: 60. Slider: 50. Changeup: 70. Control: 55.
Track Record: Vizcaino signed for just $14,000 and began his career with three nondescript seasons, but he broke out in 2019 on the strength of a greatly improved changeup to go with his explosive fastball. The Yankees, impressed with his gains, brought him to their alternate training site in 2020 despite the fact he has yet to pitch above high Class A.
Scouting Report: Vizcaino is an elite athlete who is one of the fastest runners and highest jumpers in the Yankees’ system. He pairs that athleticism with a powerful right arm that generates upper-90s fastballs and a plus-plus changeup, which helped him strike out more than a batter per inning in 2019, Vizcaino’s slider was a point of focus at the alternate training site. Rather than change the pitch itself, the Yankees tweaked Vizcaino’s delivery with a bit of a hip turn to help him stay closed and on-line toward the plate. Those alterations helped him land his slider more consistently and play as an average pitch. Vizcaino throws all his pitches for strikes but still needs to add strength to his frame, which will help improve his durability.
The Future: After a summer facing more experienced hitters, he may open 2021 at Double-A. . -
Fastball: 60. Slider: 50. Changeup: 70. Control: 55.
Track Record: Vizcaino signed for just $14,000 and began his career with three nondescript seasons, but he broke out in 2019 on the strength of a greatly improved changeup to go with his explosive fastball. The Yankees, impressed with his gains, brought him to their alternate training site in 2020 despite the fact he has yet to pitch above high Class A.
Scouting Report: Vizcaino is an elite athlete who is one of the fastest runners and highest jumpers in the Yankees’ system. He pairs that athleticism with a powerful right arm that generates upper-90s fastballs and a plus-plus changeup, which helped him strike out more than a batter per inning in 2019, Vizcaino’s slider was a point of focus at the alternate training site. Rather than change the pitch itself, the Yankees tweaked Vizcaino’s delivery with a bit of a hip turn to help him stay closed and on-line toward the plate. Those alterations helped him land his slider more consistently and play as an average pitch. Vizcaino throws all his pitches for strikes but still needs to add strength to his frame, which will help improve his durability.
The Future: After a summer facing more experienced hitters, he may open 2021 at Double-A. . -
TRACK RECORD: Vizcaino was signed out of the Dominican Republic as a 19-year-old, then posted three underwhelming seasons—two of which were spent mostly at Rookie-level Pulaski— before a greatly improved changeup allowed him to jump into the Yankees’ pack of intriguing pitching prospects.
SCOUTING REPORT: Vizcaino opened the year as one of the most nondescript members of a talented pitching staff at low Class A Charleston. Once scouts got a look, however, they saw a fastball that had jumped into the mid-90s and was touching as high as 98 mph. More than that, his changeup was a true weapon that was getting swings and misses by the bushel. The pitch, thrown in the low 90s, was effective not for its separation from his fastball, but because it showed sharp dive that mimicked a split-fingered fastball and was effective against hitters from both sides of the plate. The next step will be to sharpen his slider, which is thrown in the low 80s with a spin rate that averaged around 2,500 revolutions per minute and varied from potentially solid-average to below-average.
THE FUTURE: After a month-long stint in the Florida State League, Vizcaino will return there in 2020 to continue working on sharpening his breaking ball. Improvement in that area will greatly improve his chances of staying in the rotation. -
TRACK RECORD: Vizcaino was signed out of the Dominican Republic as a 19-year-old, then posted three underwhelming seasons—two of which were spent mostly at Rookie-level Pulaski— before a greatly improved changeup allowed him to jump into the Yankees' pack of intriguing pitching prospects.
SCOUTING REPORT: Vizcaino opened the year as one of the most nondescript members of a talented pitching staff at low Class A Charleston. Once scouts got a look, however, they saw a fastball that had jumped into the mid-90s and was touching as high as 98 mph. More than that, his changeup was a true weapon that was getting swings and misses by the bushel. The pitch, thrown in the low 90s, was effective not for its separation from his fastball, but because it showed sharp dive that mimicked a split-fingered fastball and was effective against hitters from both sides of the plate. The next step will be to sharpen his slider, which is thrown in the low 80s with a spin rate that averaged around 2,500 revolutions per minute and varied from potentially solid-average to below-average.
THE FUTURE: After a month-long stint in the Florida State League, Vizcaino will return there in 2020 to continue working on sharpening his breaking ball. Improvement in that area will greatly improve his chances of staying in the rotation. -
It used to be that a fastball-changeup righthander would be ticketed for the bullpen unless they could develop an average breaking ball. But Vizcaino may be able to succeed over longer outings even if his fringe-average slider doesn't improve. His changeup is that good, and unlike most changeups, it functions more like a split-finger fastball. Vizcaino's plus-plus, 90-91 mph changeup is a dastardly weapon, and it's hard with late drop. It looks like it's headed to the bottom of the strike zone before diving toward the dirt. Vizcaino's 94-98 mph fastball give him a second plus pitch. The development of his inconsistent fringe-average slider could help him turn into a mid-rotation starter. It's bigger, slower (82-84 mph) and he doesn't show confidence to throw it in tough counts.
