Orioles Prospect Profile: Wynn Pelzer (RHP)

Some things you might not have known about Wynn Pelzer, who is currently a Baltimore Orioles minor league pitching prospect:

• Wynn Isaiah Pelzer was born on June 23rd, 1986, in Charleston, South Carolina.
• He's listed at 6'1", 205 lbs; he bats and throws right-handed.
• Was a four-time "All Region" selection as a high-school baseball player at Holy Hill Roberts High School, and was selected by Baseball America as the top prospect in the Coastal Plains League following the '05 season.
• He attended the University of South Carolina on a full athletic scholarship.
• Spent time as both a starter and a closer at time for the Gamecocks, and while he showed major league potential, he didn't post great numbers.
• Overall, he was 8-9 with a 4.50 ERA for SC, in 63 games (13 starts). He struck out 8.5/9, but struggled with his command, averaging close to 4.5 walks.
• A rough junior season did spoil his numbers some; as a full-time reliever, he posted an ERA of 5.52. But he also showed some potential for future dominance, striking out almost 11 hitters for every 9 innings pitched.
• Pelzer is represented by agent Scott Boras, and was selected by the Padres is the 9th round of the 2007 draft, and was signed for a bonus of $190,000.
• At the time he was drafted, we was widely perceived to be "raw, but with a high ceiling". Any scouting report you see online, this quote was in it, guaranteed. It's basically scout speak for "throws WICKED hard, but has absolutely no idea where the ball is going. Might kill somebody. Don't say I didn't warn you."
• Was used primarily as a starter his first two seasons as a pro, with some level of success - he posted ERAs below 4 in both seasons, his K rate was a litlte above 8 per 9 innings, and he walked a lot fewer batters than he did in college.
• Was named the 7th-best prospect in the San Diego organization prior to 2010 by Baseball America; BBA also graded his fastball and slider as the best in the Padres' minor league system.
• Regressed some in 2010, posting an ERA of 4.20, but with a WHIP of 1.68 (yuck!), in a little more than half a season with the Padres AA team in San Antonio. He was demoted to the bullpen at one point.
• Was then traded straight-up (with $1.1 million in cash, of course) to the Orioles, for 3B Miguel Tejajda, in July of 2010. The trade was supposedly made primarily to give "3B of the Future" Josh Bell an extended look at the major league level.
• An understated Andy MacPhail on Pelzer, at the time of the trade:

"We like him; we think his future is likely in the bullpen.. He has the potential to have two plus major league pitches."

• Sure enough, Plezer spent the rest of 2010 in the bullpen, pitching for Bowie. His numbers were decent: a 4.50 ERA and a strikeout per inning, spanning 10 games in relief.
• Was exposed by the Orioles to the Rule 5 draft in December of 2010, so another team could have taken him; nobody did. Exposing Pelzer puzzled a lot of baseball analysts, and made others wonder about the Oriole long-term assessment of his value.
• After the 2010 season, Baseball America ranked him as the 6th nest prospect in the Orioles minor league system; John Sickels at Minor League ball ranked him 10th, and FanGraphs ranked him 9th. 

A brief Baseball Beginnings scouting report on Pelzer (by John Klima), while he was in the Padres minor league system in 2009:

"STRENGTHS: Above-average athletic actions on mound. Above-average arm speed, hit 96 and put it on outside corner to RHH. Pitched with FB at 91-93, hard slider at 88, with tight rotation in this look. Fields his position; true fifth infielder.
WEAKNESSES: Funky arm action and unconventional max-effort delivery. DNS third pitch. Frame is a concern. Age plays against him now.
SUMMARY: Could be ML bullpen help with makings of two put-away pitches."

Prospect Notes from FanGraphs:

"Pelzer was obtained from San Diego late in the season for Miguel Tejada, but Baltimore could have come out of the deal with nothing as the right-hander was left available during the Rule 5 draft yesterday. Baltimore does not have a ton of depth in the system so the decision to leave him unprotected is puzzling. Pelzer has spent the majority of his career in the starting rotation but he projects as a reliever due to the lack of polish on his secondary pitches (slider, changeup, splitter). If he can develop more consistent command, he could become a high-leverage reliever thanks to his low-90s fastball and slider. Pelzer had fairly ordinary ground-ball rates in 2010 but he showed very good rates in ‘08 and ’09. He has strong legs, which allows him to generate power without putting too much pressure on his shoulder. He utilizes a high leg kick and long stride. His delivery is fairly easy and he throws with a three-quarter motion. Pelzer uses a slightly higher arm slot for his breaking ball than for his heater."

A youtube video interview with Pelzer, originally posted on Orioles Hangout: