ATL

Hunter Brown, P

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Scouting report

Brown is one of several pitchers who blew up during the 2020 Fall Instructional League in Florida. He was often up to 99 at the alt site and sat in the mid-90s during instructs while incorporating a good slider and a rebooted curveball (Brown shelved it in college but it has now been reintroduced in pro ball, and is already better than the slider). Both breaking balls have impact potential. There are some similarities with the way Walker Buehler's stuff changed when he first returned from Tommy John. Brown had a long layoff (though it was because of the pandemic rather than a TJ) and returned with more velo and two good breaking balls rather than just one. Brown's uptick in stuff has coincided with a change in his physicality, as he's clearly taking advantage of pro strength programs and facilities (remember, this guy comes out of a Division II school). The change in his physique lends credence to the uptick in stuff, though there's still relief risk here because we haven't seen Brown hold it for a whole season as a starter and he was wild during his brief 2021 big league spring training work. He has a chance to take yet another leap in 2021, especially in an org that is very good at developing pitchers. (Alternate site, Fall Instructional League)