Rank History
| Year | Team | Position | Team Rank | OFP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | ATL | LHP | 25 | 40 |
Grades Update: Dec 2020
| OFP | Role | FB | CB | SL | CH | Cnt/Cmd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 40 | 40 | 50 | 45 | 50 | 40 | 45/40 |
Dec 2020 Report
Evaluator: Justin Lada
Age: 28 yr
Height: 6-0
Weight: 200 lbs
Hits/Throws: L/L
Acquired: 2015 Draft, Round 3, LAD
RuleV: On 40-Man Roster
Physical Description: Compact frame. Short, ordinary build. Short limbs. No physical projection remaining in neither frame, or for his age. Similar build to Wade Miley.
Delivery & Mechanics: Mid-section leg kick from a modified stretch. Works from middle of the rubber. Long arm swing. Lacks efficiency in lower half. Good lead leg block but doesn't get good extension or stay over the rubber well. Does not have real strong hip/torso shoulder separation. Despite long arm swing, Pfeifer does show good arm speed through his high 3/4 arm slot. Uses a slide step from his true stretch. Not much of a pickoff move but slide step will make him hard to run on. Works with a very quick tempo that seems to benefit his profile.
Fastball: 89-93, runs up to 95. Fills up the zone with the pitch. Good at working east-west and north-south. Despite not having much height or long levers he does manage to get good plane with the heater. Does not have much extension with his delivery but his fastball does appear to get on hitters faster than his velocity might suggest, possibly due to his tempo and arm speed. Has to work on the black of the plate to miss bats and avoid the barrel. Very hittable pitch when in the zone. Comfortable locating all over the zone. Pitches off the fastball. No real movement. Grade: 50
Curveball: 76-78 with 1-6 movement. Good, downward break but depth can be inconsistent. Usually introduces the offering more consistently later in outings. He can steal strikes with it and induce weak contact. Lower-usage third offering that flashes average. Arm action slows down at times to throw it, but big break lets him get away with it at times. Grade: 45
Slider: 78-81. 2-7 shape with good, two plane action. Has sharp, late tilt and often gets hitters to swing over it. Will miss up at times with it but has enough movement to get away with occasionally. Tunnels well with the fastball. Best pitch in his arsenal and isn't afraid to double up on it. Grade: 50
Changeup: 83-85 with powerful, vertical action. Doesn't show horizontal movement. His overall arm speed gives him the ability to sell the pitch. Below-average command of the pitch and below average characteristics overall. May be occasional offering to keep left handers honest but needs better control Grade: 40
Control and Command: Fills up the strike zone and has good fastball command. Control over command profile. Long arm swing and moderate-effort delivery lacking efficiency reduces ability to show average command. Does not need to throw the slider for strikes for it to be effective as it plays well off the fastball, which as noted, he does have good command of. Below-average control of the changeup and average command of his curveball. Better control as a starter than as a reliever in 2019 after switching to the rotation. Control: 45 | Command: 40
Overall: Pfeifer moved into the rotation from the bullpen in 2019 and got stretched out as a 27 year old in High-A, moving up to Double-A and ended up in the bullpen briefly in Triple-A late in the year. His fastball command and slider were too advanced for High-A to get a good read, where he had a 17 strikeout game in eight innings. Up at Double-A, he managed to hold 91-93 with his fastball in starts as he got stretched out. Command, plane, arm speed and tempo help him get swings and misses with the pitch, when he locates it on the black, despite the average velocity. The slider plays very well as he pitches off his fastball with good, two-plane break. He can use the curveball effectively in spots as a third pitch but is mostly a two pitch arm that profiles as a spot starter or a multi-inning reliever. His slider gives him a real weapon as a reliever that works against left and right handed hitters. He could use some tweaks to his delivery to become more efficient. His overall success depends on his newfound velocity holding up to 93 consistently and the command of his fastball.
OFP: 40
Role: 40 - Spot Starter or Long Reliever
Risk: Moderate
