Congratulations to Brendon Little Chicago Cubs 27th pick of the first round MLB17 Draft
Little, 20, stands 6-2 and is a power pitcher who showed flashes in high school and originally signed with North Carolina. He pitched little there and wound up transferring after a breakout summer in the Cape Cod League. His velocity reached the mid-90s with a good breaking ball.
The hard-throwing lefty sports a plus to double-plus fastball that consistently works in the mid- to upper-90s velo band, and pairs with it a hard low-80s power curve with sharp bite and impressive depth. There’s some effort in Little’s arm and his control can come and go, but the lefty produces good angle on his offerings and has the stuff to get out big league hitters right now out of the bullpen.
The big question surrounding the hard-throwing JuCo standout is whether or not he can stick as a starter, long term. He can struggle to execute consistently over longer stretches, and his changeup will need further refinement in order to play at the highest level. Still, Little shows athleticism and good feel on the bump, and enough teams view him as a potential starter that he should be in play during the first round and a lock to go on Day One. Should he land with a playoff competitor on draft day, he could find himself contributing out of a big league pen later this summer before returning to the minors to finish his development as a starter the following year.
