The Los Angeles Dodgers entered a shortened 2020 MLB Draft with six selections, looking to bolster what was already one of the best farm systems in all of baseball.
With the No. 29 overall pick, the club added another flamethrower in right-handed pitcher Bobby Miller out of Louisville. It marked the second consecutive year, and the fourth in the last five, the organization used its first-round selection on a college player.
It was a sign of how the rest of the Draft would play out, as the Dodgers went on to select three additional pitchers with their remaining five picks.
That certainly wasn’t by design, but Dodgers scouting director Billy Gasparino is nonetheless thrilled with the club’s haul. “We’re fired up,” he said. “We just got a lot of velocity, a lot of pure stuff. It’s big, it’s right handed. It was a strength of the Draft, and we just took advantage of it.
“Knack and Beeter, these guys are mid-90s fastballs with breaking balls to go along with it. Knack is an outstanding strike thrower and Beeter had a good year his first time as a starting pitcher. We were ecstatic to get both guys.”
Though the Dodgers are hopeful all four pitchers can stick in the starting rotation, Gasparino conceded that may not end up being the case. “I think we’re hopeful all four are going to start,” he said.
“Obviously, (the bullpen) is always a good insurance plan. I know Beeter is probably the one that most people have doubt on, and we’re very bullish on his starting chances.
“I guess if you had to pick one, it would be Beeter. With his breaking ball, which we thought was the best in the draft class, we would be happy if it ends up in the bullpen. We think it would be dominant there.”
Bobby Miller
Miller, who compared his competitive nature to that of Walker Buehler, certainly has an opportunity to quickly rise through the Dodgers’ Minor League ranks.
Prior to the 2020 season being cut short due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, he had compiled a 2-0 record with a 2.31 ERA in four starts for the Cardinals.
In three seasons at Louisville, the 21-year-old went 15-2 with a 3.44 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 175 strikeouts across 170 innings pitched.
“His size, his athleticism, he averaged a 95 mph fastball, and I think those three ingredients make a good foundation to start,” Gasparino said.
“And then you start layering on how improved his secondary pitches were, the multiple plus ones, and the character and makeup. All of our intel was very strong on him.”
Miller struggled with his command at times last year, but Gasparino isn’t concerned that will be a long-term issue going forward. “That was one of the things that trended up in his delivery,” he said.
“If you got back and look at 2019 and 2020, he made significant adjustments for the better. We thought that was a very positive sign of his aptitude and athleticism.
“Our pitching group on the player development side loved the direction he was going, and are ready to take it to the next level with the few steps that they see fit.”
Landon Knack
Like Miller, Knack was in the midst of an outstanding 2020 campaign before the rest of play was cancelled. He pitched to a superb 4-0 record, 1.08 ERA and 0.52 WHIP in four starts, registering 51 strikeouts in comparison to just one walk over 25 innings.
“The funny thing is he’s always been an elite strike thrower,” Gasparino said of Knack’s impressive strikeout-to-walk ratio.
“He’s a former position player that started pitching and is just naturally gifted at throwing strikes. We kind of identified that a little bit last year. As the fall started to unwind, Marty Lamb flagged him as a guy who made a jump in velocity and stuff.
“You have strikes, pitchability and stuff, and then all of a sudden he comes out in spring and the stuff not only improved, it improved by a large gap. He went from like a 90 mph guy to a 95 mph guy. Everything upticked. You match that with the natural strike throwing ability, and he had a great year.”
Clayton Beeter
Beeter primarily appeared out of the bullpen in his two seasons at Texas Tech, accumulating a 2-4 record, 2.81 ERA and 1.18 WHIP with 33 strikeouts against four walks across 41.2 innings (25 games).
However, he was exclusively a starting pitcher during the 2020 campaign, putting up a solid 2.14 ERA in 21 frames. “To be totally honest, he surprised us,” Gasparino said of Beeter’s successful but small sample size.
“We saw him pitch a lot last year and thought we had him pegged as what kind of talent he was. Whether it was the extended period away from his Tommy John surgery that he started to get his feel back, or his tempo improved, his execution improved, his ability to re-focus mentally and adjust quickly after making a bad pitch.
“It just all really improved. His curveball strike percentage went up and he started to show a little bit of a change. He just became more of a starter option than we ever thought he would be.
“The Texas Tech coaches say he’s one of the strongest guys they’ve ever had as a pitcher there. The athleticism stood out, we love his makeup and engineering background. It just all came together for us on a guy we really liked.”
Gavin Stone
With the exception of his freshman season, Stone was largely dominant during his three-year tenure at Central Arkansas. He posted a 1.52 ERA as a sophomore in 2019 and followed up that performance with an even better 1.30 ERA this season.
Have you subscribed to our YouTube channel? It’s the best way to watch player interviews, exclusive coverage from events, participate in our shows, and more!
