The Red Sox have agreed to a deal with first-round draft pick Kyson Witherspoon, according to MLB Pipeline’s Jim Callis. Witherspoon will get a $5MM bonus, which is below the $5,114,200 slot price attached to the 15th overall selection.
The University of Oklahoma product was viewed as the top college right-hander in this year’s draft class, and the best righty pitcher available altogether on some boards. It was seen as something of a coup for the Red Sox to grab Witherspoon with the 15th overall pick, as pundits all had him within their top tens. Fangraphs was highest on Witherspoon as the sixth-rated prospect in their rankings, Baseball America had him seventh, the Athletic’s Keith Law placed Witherspoon ninth, and MLB Pipeline and ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel each had the righty tenth.
Witherspoon’s repertoire is highlighted by an outstanding fastball that can hit 99mph, and regularly sits in the 95-97mph range. His slider also received a 60-grade from both BA and Pipeline, as Witherspoon can throw the pitch with “horizontal action and depth” (as per Pipeline’s scouting report) anywhere from the mid-80s to touching 91mph. His curveball and changeup aren’t quite as consistently high-rated by evaluators, but there is plus potential with either pitch, giving Witherspoon the possibility of a front-of-the-rotation arsenal. His delivery is a little unusual, but Law observes that Witherspoon’s arm action helps him achieve quality control on his pitches.