Julian Aguiar Stats & Scouting Report

Full name Julian Aguiar
Born 06/04/2001 in Long Beach, CA
Profile Ht.: 6'3" / Wt.: 180 / Bats: L / Throws: R
School Cypress JC
Drafted in the 12th round (360th overall) by the Cincinnati Reds in 2021 (signed for $125,000).

View Draft Report

Aguilar primarily played the infield in high school but showed promise on the mound as an upperclassman. He began focusing on pitching full time at El Camino (Calif.) JC and quickly emerged as one of the state’s top junior college prospects in 2020 before the season shut down. He transferred to Cypress (Calif.) JC this spring and showed a velocity bump to remain one of the top JC prospects in the region. Aguilar is a slim, projectable athlete with a loose, quick arm. His fastball ranges from 90-95 mph with plus life out of an easy, low-effort delivery, and some evaluators believe he could touch 100 mph in the future after he adds weight and strength to his 180-pound frame. His slider and changeup both flash above-average to give him to the three-pitch mix to start, but his control comes and goes and will need to be tightened up. He is committed to Tennessee and has a chance to be a member of the Volunteers’ weekend rotation if he makes it to campus.

Top Rankings

BA Grade: 50/High

Track Record: Aguiar started pitching relatively late in his high school career, but a year at Cypress (Calif.) JC exclusively on the mound helped make him a solid draft prospect. Aguiar was one of the youngest junior college players in the 2021. At 19, he was younger than some of the high school draftees. After a solid 2022 season, Aguiar dominated at times in 2023. His 1.92 ERA in the Midwest League was easily the best among pitchers with 70 or more innings.

Scouting Report: Aguiar made a big step forward in 2023. He showed that he not only has a big league-caliber array of pitches, but he’s also figuring out how to use them. He works up and in on lefties with his four-seamer, then drops in his curveball for strikes. His plus changeup is a weapon he wields against righties and lefties, but it is very much a chase pitch. He has a plus two-seamer in the mid 90s that is hard for righthanded hitters to handle, and there are days when his slider will flash above-average as well. On those days, he’s lights out. On others, the slider disappears and he’s much more hittable, especially for righthanded hitters.

The Future: Aguiar’s fastball, changeup and developing slider would work well in the bullpen, but he’s still got a shot to develop into a No. 4 starter.

Scouting Grades Fastball: 55 | Curveball: 45 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 60 | Control: 55

Aguilar primarily played third base in high school but showed promise on the mound as an upperclassman. He began focusing on pitching full time at El Camino (Calif.) JC and quickly emerged as one of the state’s top junior college prospects. Aguilar is a slim, projectable athlete with a loose delivery and quick right arm. His fastball sits 89-93 mph and will touch 95 mph early in outings. His 78-81 mph slider is inconsistent and needs to be tightened up, but it shows the makings of an average pitch. He also has feel for a developing changeup. Aguilar overwhelmed hitters at the juco level with a 44-to-9 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 47.1 innings. He has the athleticism to repeat his delivery and continue throwing strikes. He is a hard worker with plenty of room for growth.

Cincinnati Reds activated RHP Julian Aguiar from the 15-day injured list.
Cincinnati Reds placed RHP Julian Aguiar on the 15-day injured list retroactive to September 21, 2024. Right elbow sprain.
Cincinnati Reds selected the contract of RHP Julian Aguiar from Louisville Bats.
RHP Julian Aguiar assigned to Louisville Bats from Chattanooga Lookouts.
Chattanooga Lookouts activated RHP Julian Aguiar.
RHP Julian Aguiar assigned to Chattanooga Lookouts from Dayton Dragons.
RHP Julian Aguiar assigned to Chattanooga Lookouts from Dayton Dragons.