Makhi
Booker

6/16/16
Booker is 5-foot-11 170-pounds and has a very athletic build. Clocked at 84-86 but has some deception in his arm action. Throws from a 3/4 slot, but has a short but quick arm swing. Has heavy sink and armside run because of slot and arm action. Low glove side but is still able to stay in control and drive down the mound. Sound mechanics, lands square and athletic after each pitch.


Winter Trials South (January 30, 2016)

Makhi is 5-foot-11 175 pounds with high end athleticism that needs some polish. He ran a 4.00 home-to-1B. Offensively- Makhi starts in a spread stance with bat just off his shoulder at a 30 degree angle. He uses a choked up approach with a short take back of his hands. Gains some ground forward with stride landing slightly open. Explosive through the zone with his hands, as evidenced by his 87 MPH exit velocity.  Aggressive weight transfer through contact. Groundball/line drive contact which would fit his game. Defensively- Somewhat raw with his approach as an outfielder. Uses his breakdown footwork well. Would like to see more consistency with his throwing actions (longer) and crowhop (more aggressive with back leg drive through). Short arms the ball at 82 MPH. Pitching- On the mound is where Makhi exhibits the most polish. He uses a slight rocker step, driving to a compact mid chest balance point. Arm action is straight back like a catcher, appearing out of nowhere from a low 3/4 slot. Consistent with landing, throws through front side at times.  Easy effort producing his velocity with some late arm whip. Ball jumps on the hitter. Sat 83-84 MPH today with FB but appears better. Interesting to see if he lengthens his arm action, what could happen in the velocity department. Good feel for secondary stuff, Curveball sat 67-69 with tight rotation and 2-to-8 type action. Change up was sold via arm speed but on the firm side at 78-80 MPH today. Saw better differential in September.

 Booker pitches with tempo and has a slinger mentality from a low ¾ arm slot. Most times, he gets arm side run to his fastball but when he gets on top of the baseball, he gets good downward action. His fastball velocity ranged from 80-86 miles-per-hour. His arm slot ranges when he throws his breaking ball (67-69 MPH). His changeup is a solid offering at 77-78 MPH. There is some disconnect out of the stretch and his velocity falls to 80-83 with less command. There is a lot to like about this young prospect on the mound.