SCOUTING REPORT / TRENT STEVENSON
Scouts going to
Arizona
in the spring will have at least two top pitching prospects to watch in Stevenson
and fellow righthander Jake Barrett, but you couldn’t find two more opposite pitching
profiles. Stevenson first appeared at a Perfect Game event as a freshman in 2005;
and at that point was a 5-foot-10, 125-pound middle infielder with minimal tools.
He has since grown into a highly-projectable, 6-6, 175-pound righthander who, while
still almost painfully thin, shows easy athleticism and very loose actions. He has
a power pitcher’s arm action with clean, tension-free extension out front. Stevenson’s
fastball was 89-91 mph at the Area Code Games in early August and he was seen up
to 93-94 mph during the fall. He also throws an upper-70s slurve-type breaking ball
and has a very good feel for a changeup. He has a good approach to pitching and
has shown the ability to pitch to spots. Stevenson is very similar to former
Arizona
high school righthander Brett Jacobson, who attended Vanderbilt and was selected
in the fourth round of the 2008 draft, except that his delivery and arm action appear
more repeatable and effortless at the same age. Stevenson has signed with
Arizona
.
--DAVID RAWNSLEY