Hunter Barco

Barco was a highly regarded high school pitcher who ranked No. 32 on the 2019 BA 500, but made it to campus at Florida and quickly established himself in the team’s starting rotation. A 6-foot-4, 210-pound lefthander with a low arm slot and plenty of deception, Barco posted a 1.40 ERA over 19.1 innings in the shortened 2020 season, then managed a 4.01 ERA over 16 starts and 83 innings in 2021 while showing above-average control. Barco will touch 94-95 mph but mostly pitches in the 90-92 mph range and he does a nice job establishing the pitch in any quadrant of the strike zone. He also shows good command of a sweepy, low-80s slider which comes from an angle that’s difficult on both lefties and righties. His slot makes the pitch inconsistent and it backs up at times, but is generally an above-average pitch. Barco also throws a mid-80s changeup that is solid-average or better as well. Barco was pitching himself into the first round before an elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery ended his season. He posted a 2.50 ERA over nine starts and 50.1 innings in 2022 and profiles as a back-of-the-rotation, high-likelihood big league starter, given a clean recovery.