WCH
Michael Kopech, P
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Scouting report
It sometimes feels foolish to "wait for things to click" with very talented but frustrating (and perhaps flawed) prospects, but that's what it seemed like was actually happening for Kopech just before he blew out his elbow late in 2018. The surgery's timing meant Kopech lost all of the 2019 regular season and began rehabbing in a game environment during Fall Instructional League. His first bolt was 99 mph. He settled in at 96-99, and threw several plus sliders. Kopech made his spring 2020 debut on March 10 and threw 11 pitches, six of which were 100 mph or more. It was his only inning of 2020, as Spring Training was shut down soon after, and Kopech would later opt out of the season amid the pandemic and other meaningful off-field considerations. As such, his evaluation is the same. Kopech's trademark heat and slider give him late-inning potential even if he can't start, an outcome that seems more likely during the early part of his big league career now that he's missed two seasons and may take time to build up an innings load. He'll be able to start if he can command that slider to the back foot of left-handed hitters; he needs to have an out-pitch against lefties and some sort of viable third pitch, which I think will more likely be a second breaking ball than a split or a changeup. If he can do that, I think he's a 3-to-4 WAR starter. (At-home dev)