MIAMI MARLINS PROSPECT WATCH: CODY POTEET

The Miami Marlins are ranked near the bottom in terms of depth and promise on the farm. Tell that to this Florida State League All-Star in the Marlins organization.

The Miami Marlins traded away nearly every desirable prospect in their system as they attempted to build a team apt to compete right away. That is yet to materialize, and the Marlins farm system is often regarded as being among the worst in the Major Leagues.

However, through the 2017 several players have shown tremendous growth. They are giving evaluators reason to believe they are far more capable then they were originally given credit for. All-Star Cody Poteet belongs in that class.

Poteet was recently named to the Florida State League All-Star game after a strong start to the season. Standing at 6 foot 1 inch, 195 pounds, the right-hander figures to be a rotational starter within a couple of years.

Poteet was initially drafted in the 27th round out of Christian High School in El Cajon, California. He instead decided to attend UCLA, where his value skyrocketed. He was taken in the fourth round by the Miami Marlins in 2015 and has risen through the organization quickly.

This season he has pitched for the Jupiter Hammerheads against elevated competition. He has continued to pitch well, posting a 2.53 ERA and an average game score of 55. His numbers are skewed slightly by two poor starts in an otherwise strong, and consistent campaign.

Possessing a fastball that sits in the 88-92 MPH range, Poteet relies on location and changing speed for the majority of his outs. His strike out totals have decreased as he has faced better hitting. Currently, Poteet has 21 strikeouts in 42.1 innings, only 10% of those K’s were instances where the batter was caught looking.

Projecting Poteet

He induces a lot of ground balls, which has resulted in seven double plays this season alone. That will likely be the key to his success. As he progresses through the minor league system, his splits will have to be better than 50/50 for ground balls and fly balls.

The Marlins continue to slow-play Poteet’s development. He has thrown over 80 pitches only once, throwing 81 earlier this season. Giving him pitches instead of innings, Poteet has made the most of his opportunities.

Cody Poteet figures to be a middle of the rotation, to back-end starter. He possess four pitches which he can throw for a strike at anytime. However, lack of any true plus pitch makes scouts wonder he will fare against Major League hitters.

Cody Poteet is another example that suggests the Miami Marlins farm system might be considerably underrated. He might not be the next coming of Nolan Ryan, but he shown the ability to find success at every corner of his professional career so far.