Kyle Lobstein

Lobstein emerged on the summer showcase circuit last year, showing off the cleanest arm and delivery of any starting pitcher in the '08 draft class. BA ranked him as the No. 2 prospect at the Tournament of Stars, where he popped up from under the radar to make USA Baseball's junior national team. He followed that with a turn as the No. 1 prospect at the Area Code Games in Long Beach, and he committed to Arizona as a two-way player. He flashed an average fastball that bumped 92 mph, a promising curveball with great spin and a solid-average circle changeup. His arm still works just as well this spring, and his 6-foot-3, 185-pound athletic frame remains projectable, but Lobstein hasn't dominated inferior northern Arizona competition, and scouts' ardor for him had cooled. His fastball was topping out at 90 mph and usually sitting at 87-88, fringe-average even for a lefthander. Despite his clean arm, his velocity hasn't jumped, and neither of his secondary pitches have been quite as sharp as they were last summer. Several scouts echoed the same phrase for Lobstein: He just hasn't turned the corner. Some scouts wonder if he has enough killer instinct but cautioned that Lobstein could just be pitching to the level of his competition. A team with extra picks is expected to gamble on Lobstein toward the back of the first round or in the supplemental round, but area scouts cautioned that it could take a seven-figure signing bonus to keep Lobstein from pitching (and hitting) for the Wildcats next spring.