Brett Harker Stats & Scouting Report

Full name Brett Keaton Harker
Born 07/09/1984 in Fountain Inn, SC
Profile Ht.: 6'3" / Wt.: 185 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School College Of Charleston
Drafted in the 5th round (157th overall) by the Philadelphia Phillies in 2005 (signed for $165,000).

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Strictly a reliever, Harker a major league out pitch in his low-80s power curveball, which he throws as hard as possible and with maximum effort. He's shown above-average fastball velocity as well, but mostly uses it to set up his killer curve, which he can throw for strikes or bury in the dirt. Harker has shown he can still throw hard and throw strikes on back-to-back nights as well.

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Harker's college career took off when he became the College of Charleston's closer as a sophomore in 2004. He set a school record with 13 saves that season and broke it in 2005, when he was named Southern Conference pitcher of the year and led the league with a 2.47 ERA and 15 saves. Harker signed for $165,000 as a fifth-round pick, after which the Phillies limited his innings because he had worked a lot at Charleston and also pulled a muscle in his hip. Harker's money pitch is his power curveball, which breaks late and straight down. His maximum-effort delivery makes it register in the low 80s and it's a knee-buckler that often catches batters looking. He used his fastball mostly to set up his curve in college, but Philadelphia wants him to work on throwing the heater more as a pro. Increased use of his fastball could build strength in an already quick arm, and bump up its peak velocity from its current 92 mph. With one plus pitch already, Harker could emerge as a late-inning option in the majors. He'll close in low Class A this year.