Ben Lively
Born:
03/05/1992 (Age: 32)
Bats:
Right
Throws: Right
Arm Slot: 3/4
Height: 6'4"
Weight: 190
Primary Position: RHSP
Seconday Position: -
Throws: Right
Arm Slot: 3/4
Height: 6'4"
Weight: 190
Primary Position: RHSP
Seconday Position: -
Acquisition Period:
4th Rd., 2013 MLB First-Year Player Draft (CIN); Acquired in trade for M. Byrd 12/31/14 (PHI).
Entry Point: 4 Yr College
Entry Point: 4 Yr College
Report Info
| Evaluator: | CJ Wittmann |
| Report Date: | May 24th, 2016 |
| Dates Seen: | 5/15/16 |
| Level: | Double-A |
| Affiliate: | Reading Fightin' Phils |
| MLB Team: |
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Physical Description
Tall, lean muscular frame; broad shoulder with high waist; long levers; could add strength in lower half; build to withstand starter's workload.
Mechanical Notes
Athletic; uses lower half well with strong leg drive; moderate leg kick; slight crossfire; stays over front side at landing; 3/4 arm slot with above-average arm speed; short arm circle in back; balanced landing and finish; hides ball well in back, creating deception at release; low-effort delivery; fast tempo but will speed up/slow down to effect hitter's timing; repeats delivery with ease.
| MLB ETA | Future Floor | Future Ceiling | Realistic Role | Risk | 2017 | 40 | 50 | Role 50; #5 Starting Pitcher | Low |
|---|
| Pitch | Present | Future | Sitting | Max | Comments |
| Fastball | |||||
| Fastball | 50 | 50 | 88-91 | 92 | Plus command; downhill plane with arm-side life; late hop towards home; plays up due to deception; holds velocity deep in starts. |
| Plus command; downhill plane with arm-side life; late hop towards home; plays up due to deception; holds velocity deep in starts. | |||||
| Curveball | |||||
| Curveball | 45 | 45 | 72-74 | 75 | 11-to-5 shape; loose wrist and snaps the pitch out in front; moderate bite and depth; can throw for a strike and chase pitch; will throw to both RHH/LHH; repeats arm slot and arm speed. |
| 11-to-5 shape; loose wrist and snaps the pitch out in front; moderate bite and depth; can throw for a strike and chase pitch; will throw to both RHH/LHH; repeats arm slot and arm speed. | |||||
| Slider | |||||
| Slider | 45 | 45 | 82-84 | 85 | Two-plane break; moderate tilt and depth; moderate bite to pitch; showed ability to bury pitch and backdoor LHH; can get around pitch and it will get slurvy. |
| Two-plane break; moderate tilt and depth; moderate bite to pitch; showed ability to bury pitch and backdoor LHH; can get around pitch and it will get slurvy. | |||||
| ChangeUp | |||||
| ChangeUp | 50 | 50 | 80-82 | 83 | Late arm-side fade with small vertical drop; showed innate feel for pitch; replicates arm speed and action; consistently thrown in bottom of K zone; has fastball look out of hand; commanded better to arm side than glove side; kept hitters consistently off balance and created weak contact with pitch; will be effective to LHH. |
| Late arm-side fade with small vertical drop; showed innate feel for pitch; replicates arm speed and action; consistently thrown in bottom of K zone; has fastball look out of hand; commanded better to arm side than glove side; kept hitters consistently off balance and created weak contact with pitch; will be effective to LHH. | |||||
| Overall Command | |||||
| Overall Command | 60 | 60 | |||
| Overall Control | |||||
| Overall Control | 60 | 60 | |||
MiLB Stats
Overall Summary
Lively is an athletic, tall starting pitcher who repeats his easy, low effort delivery with ease. He hides the ball well in the back and explodes forward but also changes the tempo of his delivery to create deception and keep hitters off balance. His fastball is not overpowering, but it gets on hitters quickly and has enough movement to make it difficult to square up. Lively's changeup looks identical to his fastball out of his hand, and the movement and feel for the pitch makes it his best secondary offering. Lively doesn't have a true weapon in either breaking ball, but he can throw both for strikes, and both offerings come out of the same arm slot; keeps hitters off balance. With his intelligent sequencing, pitchability, and his plus command, Lively's arsenal is enough for him to get outs at the major league level and reach his ceiling of a back-end of the rotation starter.
