Rank History
| Year | Team | Position | Team Rank | OFP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | TEX | RHP | 43 | 35 |
Grades Update: Mar 2021
| OFP | Role | FB | SL | CH | Cont/Cmd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 35 | 30 | 55 | 60 | 40 | 40/30 |
Mar 2021 Report
Evaluator: Trevor Hooth
Age: 23 yr
Height: 6-4
Weight: 222 lbs
Hits/Throws: R/R
Acquired: 2019 Round 3
RuleV: 2022
Physical Description: Lean frame with long levers. He looks a little lighter than listed weight with room to grow on the frame.
Delivery & Mechanics: From the left side of the plate, even stance with feet slight more than shoulder width apart and slight bend in the knees. Utilizes a shin high leg kick. Hands start at shoulder height, bat head is close to resting on his shoulder. Bat head raises with some bat wrap during the load. Long bat path. From the right side, it is an identical operation. He shows the ability to go with the pitch and use the whole field. Shows good feel to hit. Good feel for the strike zone should allow him to draw plenty of walks, but the length in his swing will cause plenty of whiffs.
Fastball: 92-95 T97. Crisp pitch that has some ride through the zone. He relies on it heavily, which means as an outing goes on it can become more hittable. Likes to live at the knees with the pitch, but it does play up in the zone. When his other pitches are going the fastball can play up, but standing alone it's an above average offering. Grade: 55
Slider: 80-82. Big gyro movement makes this a swing and miss offering. He likes to send it to lefties backfoot in two strike counts to put the hitters away. It can be a valuable pitch against both handed batters. Grade: 60
Changeup: This pitch is not used often. Generates some armside fade. Grade: 40
Control and Command: Slaten has posted excellent strikeout numbers because of his insanely good stuff, but they are coupled with high walk numbers. He's not immune to sailing a pitch or even spiking one in the span of an inning. Mostly, he's not missing that badly, but he falls behind in counts and inflates his pitch count. Steps forward here would be huge in his professional rise. Control: 40 | Command: 30
Overall: Slaten is likely destined for the bullpen long term, but with his fastball/slider combination he could be a very successful bullpen arm. Rangers still have him starting, and he's got the frame to do that. If he is going to stick in the rotation he'll need to take some effort out of the delivery, and see improvements in his changeup and command. The slider is a true beauty, however.
OFP: 35
Role: 30 - Up/Down Emergency Depth
Risk: High
