Top 50 Prospects: #11 – Danny Hultzen

#11 Danny Hultzen

Seattle Mariners

DOB: 11/28/1989

Previous Rank: N/A

ETA: 2012

Hultzen is the best pitcher in the history of the Virginia Cavaliers and was drafted second overall in the 2011 draft in what will go down as the deepest draft in history as far as collegiate pitching goes.  His first taste of professional baseball came in the form of six starts in the Arizona Fall League.  He gave up three runs in around 20 innings, striking out nearly a guy an inning and walking five.  The small sample really tells us nothing new and hardly confirms anything we already supposed.

Regardless, Hultzen should break camp with the Mariners out of Spring Training, and we see no reason to expect him not to succeed immediately.  His 6-foot-3 frame is athletic, and his mechanics are repeatable, although not textbook.  He is a bit of an across-the-body thrower with some wrap in the back, but there is nothing in his delivery that screams injury to us.  He has a fastball that can reach 97 mph as well as an above-average to plus changeup with good fade and excellent command.

His breaking pitch improved greatly in the last season and, while it was not nearly as sharp during the NCAA season, looked like a solid average pitch in the AFL.  His command with all three is above-average, and in a yard like Safeco, Hultzen should make several All-Star teams and have a very solid and lengthy career.