- Full name Malachi Brooks Witherspoon
- Born 08/12/2004 in Kansas City, MO
- Profile Ht.: 6'3" / Wt.: 220 / Bats: R / Throws: R
- School Northwest Florida State JC
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Drafted in the 12th round (348th overall) by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2022.
View Draft Report
Relatively new to pitching full time, Witherspoon didn’t focus on his game on the mound exclusively until the fall of 2021, when he was throwing a fastball in the 89-91 mph range and showing flashes of a good breaking ball. He has a mature body at 6-foot-2, 210 pounds, but is young for the class and will still be 17 on draft day. Witherspoon continued to flash impressive pure stuff this spring and at times he was throwing a fastball in the 90-95 mph range with a hammer curveball that had spin rates in the 3,000 rpm range. He also showed a changeup with impressive tumbling action, though his strike throwing with the pitch has been inconsistent. Witherspoon would at other times throw a fastball more in the 89-92 mph range with a changeup that showed less potential. Like his breaking ball, his fastball is also a high-spin offering, though it is a dead-zone fastball that gets hit at times currently. There are plenty of positive indicators for Witherspoon moving forward and untapped potential between his youth and relative inexperience on the mound. He’s a high-risk, high-reward sort of projection righthander who is committed to Jacksonville but could be selected in the fourth-to-sixth round range.
Top Rankings
Draft Prospects
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School: Fletcher HS, Neptune Beach, Fla. Committed/Drafted: Jacksonville
Age At Draft: 17.9
BA Grade: 45/Extreme
Scouting Grades: Fastball: 50 | Curveball: 55 | Slider: - | Changeup: 50 | Cutter: | Control: 45
Relatively new to pitching full time, Witherspoon didn’t focus on his game on the mound exclusively until the fall of 2021, when he was throwing a fastball in the 89-91 mph range and showing flashes of a good breaking ball. He has a mature body at 6-foot-2, 210 pounds, but is young for the class and will still be 17 on draft day. Witherspoon continued to flash impressive pure stuff this spring and at times he was throwing a fastball in the 90-95 mph range with a hammer curveball that had spin rates in the 3,000 rpm range. He also showed a changeup with impressive tumbling action, though his strike throwing with the pitch has been inconsistent. Witherspoon would at other times throw a fastball more in the 89-92 mph range with a changeup that showed less potential. Like his breaking ball, his fastball is also a high-spin offering, though it is a dead-zone fastball that gets hit at times currently. There are plenty of positive indicators for Witherspoon moving forward and untapped potential between his youth and relative inexperience on the mound. He’s a high-risk, high-reward sort of projection righthander who is committed to Jacksonville but could be selected in the fourth-to-sixth round range.
