Frank Mozzicato

Mozzicato didn't pitch at big national events last summer, which kept him under the radar. At the time, he was mostly throwing in the mid-to-upper 80s with good feel for a curveball and looked like a safe bet to get to Connecticut. Instead, his stock skyrocketed this spring, when he rattled off a stretch of no-hitters in four straight starts and ended the regular season averaging 21.7 K/9. One of the younger players in the class (he turns 18 on June 19), Mozzicato has plenty of projection arrows pointing up, with easy arm action, a low-effort delivery and more space to fill out his projectable frame. That should help him add to a fastball that has trended up this spring, with Mozzicato now sitting at 88-91 mph and reaching 93. His separator is a plus curveball, a 74-80 mph pitch that's one of the best breaking balls in the country from a high school lefty. It's a tight spinning pitch with top-to-bottom action, sharp bite and good depth to rack up whiffs. Mozzicato already manipulates speeds on his curveball based on the situation like a veteran, with an ability to consistently execute and command the pitch well beyond his years. Mozzicato mostly carves through hitters with his fastball and curve, but he has shown feel for a low-80s changeup that could develop into an average or better pitch. Mozzicato's pitchability is advanced for his age but he needs to improve his fastball command, though his athleticism and repeatable delivery should help him do so. Mozzicato doesn't have the present velocity of some other pitchers, but his combination of youth, delivery, physical projection and a knockout curveball have catapulted him into Day One consideration.