Austin
Shepherd

2/13/16 - Max FB: 85, FB: 82-84, CB: 64-69, CH: 68-73, SL: 70
6-foot-2, 190-pound RHP has a quick arm and works through a ¾ to high-3/4 slot with regular effort, fastball jumps out of his hand with hard arm-side run, occasional late separation causes him to miss arm-side with the curveball but it’s good when delivery is in sync with sharp 11/5 action, slider is thrown harder than curveball with slurvy type action, will slow arm occasionally on changeup but has good feel for it. Shepherd’s frame and quick arm should mean more velocity to come. He has the potential to work his way into a top arm in the 2017 class.

6/29/15 - 6-foot-1, 190-pound RHP has a quick arm that works through a high-3/4 slot with regular effort in delivery, fastball sat 81-84 mph with some arm-side run and sink, showed a 68-72 mph curveball with sharp 11/5 action, also threw a 73 mph changeup on a few occasions with good arm action, allowed one hit, walked one, and struck out three (two swinging on FB, one swinging on CH) in his two innings of work, has shown a steady increase in velocity with potential for more. As a position player, right-handed hitter hits from a balanced stance with a short stride, showed a mid to opposite field approach in BP and in game play, 84 mph exit velocity off the tee, ran a 7.03 60-yard dash, went 0-for-3 in game play flying out in each at bat. Shows soft hands defensively with athletic corner actions, all throws accurate across the diamond with a long high-3/4 release, 78 mph velocity, good body control with the ability to throw on the move, athletic defender.

2/14/15 - 6-foot-1, 186-pound RHP has shown a jump in velocity since last summer. Uses long arm action through a high-3/4 arm slot, arm shows some quickness and works well, good rhythm in delivery with online lower half, fastball sat 77-80 mph topping at 82 and is straight, throws 63-67 mph curveball for strikes that shows some depth and 11/5 action, slowed arm on 65-68 mph changeup (changeup was better at previous event) also shows a 74 mph slider with lateral action, has potential to continue to add velocity. As a position player, right-handed hitter hits from a balanced stance, uses a leg kick trigger with a short stride, short swing path that lacks extension at times, line drive type hitter with middle to pull approach, showed an increase in exit velocity from previous event at 81 mph, ran a 7.60 60-yard dash (7.45 at previous event). Defensively, showed a big jump in arm strength at 77 mph across the infield, soft hands, good lateral movement, good body control with ability to throw accurately on the move.

7/23/14 - 6-foot, 180-pound prospect ran a 7.45 60-yard dash and registered 78 mph tee exit velocity.  Hits from a balanced stance with a short stride, short path to the ball, generates bat speed through the zone, line drive type hitter, went 1-for-4 in game play with a single to right-center.  Defensively, shows average corner actions and hands, made some accurate throws across the infield with a top velocity of 65 mph.
On the mound, uses medium arm action through a high ¾ arm slot, arm is quick and loose, good lower half direction, fastball sat 75-77 mph topping at 78 with moderate arm-side run and sink, throws a 60-61 mph curveball that showed short 12/6 action, 71-73 mph changeup shows some sink and fade, also throws an effective cutter with late cutting action at 72-74 mph, interesting 2017 prospect on the mound should continue to see velocity gains.