2023 MLB Draft Roundup: Rounds 6-10

A breakdown of my favorite picks from each round

Welcome back everyone to the penultimate article my series of my favorite draft signings in each round. In case you missed it, here are the links to my favorite picks from rounds 11-15 and rounds 16-20. We have gotten to the point where the research needed for this article was much longer than previous articles as every player (aside from Caden Kendle) from rounds 1-10 ended up signing with their respective team.

In case you are new here just a quick recap regarding the series. These choices are derived solely from Trackman data that I have access to, video highlights and actually watching some of these players play. While I may not be choosing the “best” player statistically, I am choosing ones that I think are great value for the round taken and why I believe this to be true. With that being said let’s get into it.

Round 10: Andrew Sears, UConn, Detroit Tigers

When you think of UConn pitchers, you think primarily of relief pitchers that have made their way into pro ball in some capacity with the most recent being Anthony Kay of the Chicago Cubs. While Sears may not be a reliever, there is something to be said about the arm talent that is produced out in Stamford year after year.

To be fair, I am missing a decent amount of data from Sears but I can work with what I have. From the graphic above, Sears throws a sinker as his primary offering but his secondary is split relatively evenly between his changeup, fastball and slider. When you look at the movement profiles, nothing stands out too much. The fastball has a higher horizontal break than normal, the changeup has higher IVB than normal, the sinker is approaching dead zone area and the slider is a gyro slider (nothing wrong with that). However, the most important part to this is the location.

When you don’t have plus movement it’s crucial to locate pitches in the right spot and thats exactly what Sears does. Sliders out of the zone, changeups at the bottom corner, sinkers at the bottom and 4 seams at the top. Looking at his 6.24 ERA might not be a great sign but when you see that he had a 4.90 FIP with 11 home runs allowed, it’s easy to see what the problem was and how to fix it moving forward.