Brendan Beck

The younger brother of Giants pitching prospect Tristan Beck, Brendan spent four seasons in Stanford’s rotation and blossomed into one of the top pitchers in the Pac-12 Conference this spring. He went 7-1, 3.03 and finished tied for the conference lead with 106 strikeouts through the end of the regular season. Beck was previously known as a command-oriented righthander with fringy stuff, but his velocity jumped this spring to enhance his future outlook. After sitting 88-92 mph in past years, he began working 91-96 mph and set new career highs in strikeouts per nine (11.1) and opponent average (.188). Beck’s best attribute remains his feel to pitch. He has impressive command of four pitches, stays on the attack and is exceptionally poised on the mound. His mid-80s changeup is an above-average pitch he is comfortable throwing to righties or lefties in any count, his low-80s slider is an average offering that gets swings and misses and his curveball is a usable fourth offering in the upper 70s. He effectively mixes his pitches to keep hitters guessing and ties everything together with above-average control. Beck is rarely fazed on the mound and has a tendency to step up in big moments. He is a good athlete with a strong, durable frame and lasts deep into his starts. Beck’s velocity uptick has pushed him into top-three rounds consideration for some teams. He projects as a back-of-the-rotation starter who has a chance to be more.