Oregon has consistently produced a steady stream of talent over the last several years, including David Peterson, Spencer Steer, Ryne Nelson, Jonny DeLuca, Aaron Zavala, Josh Kasevich, and Sabin Ceballos.
Last weekend I went to see what the Ducks had for the next few classes.
Brock Moore, RHP
I caught Moore’s best outing of the year, bar none. The imposing, burly righty was certainly impressive out of the bullpen, and he went 5 scoreless innings while striking out 8 and walking only one. There’s some relief risk in the operation as a whole, mostly due to hip-shoulder separation and a late arm.
That being said, the stuff was electric. The fastball sat 93-97 mph, grabbing 97 a handful of times through the first few innings, and he’s grabbed triple digits in one-inning outings. The pitch lacks ideal shape, but 97 is 97.
The secondaries were surprising, however. Moore threw a mid-80s changeup with massive fading life, and a big sweeping slider in the high-70s, low-80s. It looked the part of a plus pitch if he can reign the command. Both pitches are such massive shapes they may be difficult to command long-term.
The control was good in this outing, but the d outlier. Given the relief risk in the operation and the fact he’s exclusively an east-west arm, I’d think Moore is a bullpen piece long-term. But if this outing showed anything, it certainly wouldn’t hurt to build him up and try him in a minor-league rotation.
| G | IP | ERA | FIP | K% | BB% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | 22.1 | 3.22 | 2.49 | 41% | 9.4% |
Drew Smith, 2B
Smith is the everyday second baseman for the Ducks, an average-ish defender who wasn’t challenged much during the series on either side of play.
Smith hammered a hanging lefty sweeper in the first game, and the raw power is at least average. However, he hasn’t shown consistent loft, and his damage came more so in the form of solid line drives. It’s a violent swing, and he showed more swing-and-miss than you’d like against the caliber of arms he was facing.
| AVG | OBP | SLG | HR | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| .314 | .424 | .483 | 6 | 32 | 71 |
Bennett Thompson, C
Thompson is undersized without tons of raw power, and he’s got a short, compact swing not made to lift the ball, but he certainly can impact the ball despite both of those facts. He tallied two hits in each game he played.
The catcher wasn’t challenged much behind the dish, but his throws did show some to fade to his arm side. He’s surprisingly agile for a backstop and can run some.
| AVG | OBP | SLG | HR | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| .275 | .380 | .430 | 3 | 18 | 24 |
Grayson Grinsell, LHP
Grinsell is a funky little lefty who flashed some tools and garners interest despite less-than-ideal results.
Grinsell touched the low 90s early but faded into the upper 80s as the outing progressed. That said, he drives off his back leg and attacks from a relatively high arm slot. The fastball was able to generate notable carry and some arm-side run.
Grinsell’s go-to pitch was a high-70s changeup that parachuted away from right-handed hitters, a potential above-average offering. He also tried mixing in a high-70s slider and low-70s curve, but both were ineffective.
His ultimate downfall in this start was throwing strikes, which waned in the third inning after he threw 36 pitches in the second. He was chased in the fourth inning.
Grinsell’s intrinsic fastball shape, interesting release, and an above-average offspeed pitch make him a guy to watch for 2025. A lot still needs to go right here; He’ll need another tick or two in the velocity department, breaking ball improvement, and better command before he realizes his potential as a back of the rotation arm.
| G | IP | ERA | FIP | K% | BB% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 58.2 | 3.68 | 4.57 | 28.7% | 12.7% |
Maddox Molony, SS
I hadn’t heard of Molony until a friend gave me a tip the morning before the first game. That being said, if I’m a Ducks fan, this is the guy I’m excited about. The freshman looks like he’s got the potential to be the next big thing for Oregon in the coming years.
Molony started this series by working the count and hammering a changeup for a pull-side home run. In game two, he decimated a fastball halfway into the foliage in left field, the only time I’ve seen somebody hit a home run there. It’s plus power with the ability to hammer the fastball.
The freshman does have warts against right-handed breaking stuff (specifically sweepers or sliders with big horizontal movement) but he does an admirable job spitting on breaking balls out of the zone and working the count.
Molony made some routine plays at shortstop but wasn’t challenged enough to give a long-term diagnosis.
Even though Molony won’t be eligible for the Draft until 2026, he passes the eye test and looks like a ballplayer, and the production supports what I’m seeing.
| AVG | OBP | SLG | HR | BB | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| .354 | .447 | .646 | 9 | 12 | 20 |
- Scouting Notes: Oregon Ducks, Brock Moore, Maddox Molony - May 18, 2024
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