Michael Matuella

In the spring of his sophomore year, Matuella was among the earliest group of players to throw his name into the discussion to go No. 1 overall in 2015, showing elite velocity and four quality pitches. He was electric during the 2014 ACC tournament against Clemson. The righthander then battled back pain, and was eventually diagnosed with spondylosis, a chronic back condition. Matuella rested and rehabilitated throughout the summer and fall, and came back in the spring showing elite stuff yet again. Early in the season he struggled to maintain velocity deep into starts, but still flashed mid-90s velocity with plus movement. After an impressive outing at California to start the season, Matuella sat out for a week due to forearm tightness. When he returned, his stuff and stock began to take steps forward. In short stints, he lacked elite command but showed all four pitches. During a start against Pitt in mid-March, Matuella looked a lot like his old self, working 92-96 and mowing through the lineup through 6 1/3 innings. Then, Matuella suffered from arm issues in a start against Boston College, and needed Tommy John surgery. When he's on the field, Matuella has arguably the best stuff (and control) of any college pitcher in this draft class. His surgery and known chronic back condition complicate things, as does his short performance track record. He never pitched more than 60 innings in a season for Duke and never pitched summer ball such as for USA Baseball or in the Cape Cod League. Some teams will not have Matuella on their draft boards due to the medical reports, while other teams see him as a potential frontline starter that could be had outside of the top few picks.