RHP CJ Van Eyk, Florida State
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DoB: 9/15/1998.
2020 Stats: 1-1, 1.31 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 25/12 K/BB in 20.2 IP
Van Eyk has had an interesting ride. A potential top five rounds pick out of a Tampa-area high school in 2017, arm troubles and signability pushed him out of that range and he ended up in Tallahassee wearing maroon and gold. He was an immediate contributor as a freshman (2.86 ERA, 71/30 K/BB) and kept on rolling as a sophomore (3.81 ERA, 129/41 K/BB), with his 129 strikeouts finishing second in the ACC to only Louisville's Reid Detmers' 167. Among underclassmen nationally, only Detmers, Ball State's Drey Jameson (146), and Texas A&M's Asa Lacy (130) had more. Because of this, Van Eyk entered this draft cycle as somewhat of a "brand name" ACC starting pitcher, one with 17 wins already under his belt, plenty of national exposure, and a big curveball to make the scouts happy. While he hasn't necessarily underwhelmed in 2020 (nobody would call a 1.31 ERA "underwhelming"), the helium behind many other college arms in the same range has given Van Eyk's stock a bit of a market correction and pushed him out of the first round, but he remains one of the better arms in the loaded 2020 class.
Standing 6'1", Van Eyk comes in with a fastball in the low 90's, and there's a little bit of crossfire action in his delivery that puts good diagonal angle on the ball towards the glove side. His best pitch is a big 12-6 curveball, one which he has great feel for and which has helped him rack up 225 strikeouts during his time at Florida State. Van Eyk finishes it off with a changeup and a slider, the latter of which is his fourth pitch and less essential to the operation. His command is a little below average, but it plays up just a bit because of his aggressiveness in the zone and willingness to go right after hitters. After missing some time in high school with arm soreness, he's proven durable in college over 176.2 innings and fits the profile of a workhorse starter.
Together, I think it's very clear what Van Eyk brings to the table. He doesn't really have that ace upside since he doesn't have big velocity, great command, or a projectable frame that figures to add that velocity, but he's a proven performer with a career 3.21 ERA at Florida State who can fool even advanced college hitters with his curveball. It's a #3 or #4 starter projection, and he's a relatively safe bet to be at least a #5. That puts his likely draft range just outside the first round, either in the comp round or the early second round, though his track record of performance should be very beneficial in a year where a lot of guys don't have that.
2020 start vs FAU
2020 Bryce Jarvis vs CJ Van Eyk matchup
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