Cal
Placher

1/13/13 - Placher is a wiry 6-foot-1, 165-pound right-hander who impressed with his loose, quick arm. Placher’s fastball sat at 85-86 mph, coming from a 3/4 slot, with considerable arm-side run. Although there’s effort in the delivery, the ball jumps out of his hand. Placher also throws a slider and curveball. His 72-74 mph slider could be an effective pitch when harnessed; his curveball sat in the 66-67 range with 11/5 action.

Placher features an athletic and wiry 6-foot, 160-pound frame, one that should fill out nicely as he physically develops. The loose right-hander impressed with his lively fastball, which topped at 85 mph, and sat in 83-84 range with late arm-side action. He comes from a high ¾ arm slot and displayed rhythm and tempo throughout his mechanics.His arm works fast and he showed excellent hand acceleration. His secondary pitches included asharp slider with two-plane break, in the 69-72 range, that has a chance to be a swing-and-miss pitch. He also showed feel fora changeup that demonstrated some arm-side sink, and a 62-65 mph curveball.