The Athletics used the 73rd overall pick on Arkansas right-hander Gabe Gaeckle, adding a second straight pitcher to their draft haul.
Gaeckle brings a big arm and plenty of intrigue. His fastball was one of the best in college baseball this past season, and he backs it up with an above-average slider, plus a curveball and changeup.
The command, though, has been the sticking point. He’s dealt with control problems across his entire mix, which is why the A’s are expected to give him a look as a starter in the lower minors before deciding whether his best future might be in the bullpen.
MLB Pipeline gave the 21-year-old a 45 overall grade, with scouting marks of 60 for the fastball, 45 for the curveball, 60 for the slider, 50 for the changeup and 45 for control.
Gaeckle’s path to this point has been a winding one. The 6-foot right-hander had Tommy John surgery at 15, yet still had the kind of arm talent that put him in the first five rounds of the 2023 Draft.
He slipped to the Reds in the 20th round because of his commitment to Arkansas, then made his mark there as a freshman reliever. His first run as a starter last spring did not go as planned, though, and he posted a 6.69 ERA in nine starts before returning to the bullpen.
There’s still plenty of belief in the stuff. Some scouts see former Razorbacks teammate Gage Wood, who went 26th overall to the Phillies last July, while others see Spencer Strider.
At his best, Gaeckle’s fastball sits at 94-96 mph and touches 98, with a low release height and strong carry that make it tough to square up. He can also run hitters through a tight mid-80s slider, and he’ll flash bat-missing ability with a low-80s curveball and an upper-80s changeup.
A two-summer veteran with the U.S. collegiate national team, Gaeckle held his velocity as a starter, but command issues and a lack of deception led to more hard contact than expected. He was much sharper in the second half of his sophomore year when he worked longer outings out of the bullpen, including a huge showing against eventual national champion Louisiana State with 14 strikeouts in nine innings over two College World Series matchups. This spring, though, he hasn’t been nearly as effective in relief, struggling to spot his fastball and seeing his in-zone whiff rates drop across the board, which has made it harder to project him in the front half of a rotation.
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