Johan Oviedo

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked St. Louis Cardinals #10 prospect in 2021
  Fastball: 60. Slider: 55. Changeup: 45. Curveball: 50. Control: 40.
  
  TRACK RECORD: Oviedo had an excellent spring training and was ticketed for the alternate training site, but he was forced into emergency duty in the Cardinals’ rotation after the teamwide coronavirus outbreak decimated their pitching staff. Oviedo wasn’t quite ready and got hit hard. He also had a stint on the injured list after being exposed to someone who tested positive for Covid-19.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: The 6-foot-6 Oviedo has long arms, excellent extension and two above-average to plus pitches. His fastball sits at 94-95 mph and has touched 98, and his slider sits in the mid-80s with bite to draw swings and misses. Oviedo is a long-limbed pitcher still learning to harness his body and has below-average command and control. The result was his fastball got too much of the plate and he often fell behind hitters, rendering him unable to bury his slider as a chase pitch in strikeout situations. Oviedo’s average curveball with 11-to-5 shape proved better than expected in the majors. His changeup shows deception and drop but is inconsistent.
  
  THE FUTURE: Oviedo is still developing and has a chance to be a back-of-the-rotation starter. He’ll return to the minors in 2021 and could re-emerge in the majors at some point during the year.
• 
  Ranked St. Louis Cardinals #12 prospect in 2020
  TRACK RECORD: The towering Oviedo has been a frustrating blend of big stuff and poor control since he signed with the Cardinals for $1.9 million out of Cuba in 2016. He reached Double-A Springfield as a 21-year-old in 2019 and led the system with 163 strikeouts, but he also led it with 76 walks.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Oviedo stands an imposing 6-foot-6 with long limbs that are both a blessing and a curse. He generates easy velocity on a 94-98 mph fastball that plays up with extension out of his large frame, making it a potential plus pitch. He can get his average curveball over for a strike and puts hitters away with a tilting, snapping slider that earns above-average to plus grades. He also teases an above-average changeup. Oviedo flashes a good delivery and shows feel to pitch, but his command and control vary wildly from start to start. His preparation and maturity are improving but still need work.
  
  THE FUTURE: Oviedo's size, stuff and delivery are that of a starter, and evaluators are optimistic he will grow into his body and improve his control and consistency. He should see Triple-A Memphis in 2020.
• 
  Ranked St. Louis Cardinals #20 prospect in 2019
  Track Record: Oviedo signed with the Cardinals for $1.9 million in 2016. After three years in short-season ball, Oviedo made the jump to low Class A Peoria in 2018 and had a learning year. He went 2-6, 5.02 in the first half but adjusted to go 8-4, 3.06 in the second half.
  
  Scouting Report: Physically huge at 6-foot-6, 210 pounds, Oviedo is a mix of big stuff and poor control often seen in young, long-limbed starters. Oviedo takes time to warm up, often pitching in the low 90s in the early innings before jumping to 93-96 mph in the middle innings. His curveball flashes plus, but he's very inconsistent and will throw multiple poor ones before snapping off a plus one. He's more consistent with his above-average, potentially plus changeup. Oviedo's three above-average or better pitches led to 118 strikeouts in the Midwest League, but he also led the league with 78 walks.
  
  The Future: Like many tall pitchers, Oviedo will take time to develop control. His size and stuff intrigue enough for evaluators to consider him a potential back-end starter.
• 
  Ranked St. Louis Cardinals #23 prospect in 2018
  Oviedo joined Jonathan Machado, Randy Arozarena and Jose Adolis Garcia as big Cuban signings for the Cardinals in the 2016-17 international signing period. A late riser in the class who left the island and showed up in the Dominican Republic throwing five miles per hour harder than he did in Cuba, Oviedo signed with the Cardinals for $1.9 million. Oviedo is huge physically at 6-foot-6, 210 pounds. That size and his mid-90s fastball helped him coast through Rookie-ball and reach short-season State College as a 19-year-old in his first full season. Oviedo sits 90-94 mph with his fastball, and it plays up with extension out of his large frame and slight cutting action. He is still learning to command the pitch, but generally keeps it in the strike zone and uses it effectively. Oviedo's secondaries are further behind. He'll flash an average curveball, but his slider and changeup project below-average and limit his ability to get through the order multiple times. Oviedo's size is a blessing and a curse, in that he is well-built but lacks physical projection, leaving evaluators skeptical he can grow into more than a No. 5 starter. He'll try to show otherwise at low Class A Peoria in 2018.
• 
  Ranked St. Louis Cardinals #30 prospect in 2017
  The two headliners for the Cardinals' first significant lunge into the market for Cuban teens couldn't be more different. One is nearly a foot taller than the other, who was far more heralded as a prospect entering the signing period. What Jonathan Machado and Oviedo share however is important: $1 million bonuses and a game built for speed. Oviedo wowed scouts with a hulking frame for an 18-year-old and a heavy 94-96 mph fastball that touched 98. Described as "physically impressive" by one evaluator, Oviedo has a fluidity to his movements, an athleticism that guides his mechanics. The Cardinals' scouts harmonized their early reports on him and the club insisted on being aggressive, signing him for a $1.9 million bonus. In seven starts at the Dominican Summer League he struck out 29 in 21.2 innings. His fastball is overpowering and he has a wipeout curve that will have to be tightened and used for a strike as he advances. He'll get some scrutinized innings in extended, a turn in the GCL, and be a "jump the fence" candidate at high Class A Palm Beach as the Cardinals attempt to nurture an arm with impact-starter potential.

Minor League Top Prospects

• 
  Ranked Midwest League #17 prospect in 2018
  Oviedo's introduction to the Midwest League was a brutal one. The Cuban native was greeted by a 40 degree day with a steady wind. He recorded only one out as he was chased after he walked five batters of the six batters he faced. All five scored to crater his ERA for a month. The righthander quickly settled down from that inauspicious debut to prove to be a durable starter for Peoria. He led the league in walks allowed (79), but also was second best in opponent's batting average (.238). Like many 20-year-old pitchers, he's not all that consistent yet, but he did make steady improvement. He cut his ERA by nearly three runs from the first half (5.82) to the second half (3.02) while also improving his walk rate and holding hitters to a .212 average against in the second half of the season. Oviedo's velocity waxed and waned, but even at his worst he had an average fastball and he often sat 93-94 and touched 96. Similarly, he'll follow a well-below-average curve with one that is plus. His changeup is more consistently an above-average pitch with some scouts projecting it as a future plus offering.

• March, 2021 Scouting Report
  Fastball: 60. Slider: 55. Changeup: 45. Curveball: 50. Control: 40.
  
  TRACK RECORD: Oviedo had an excellent spring training and was ticketed for the alternate training site, but he was forced into emergency duty in the Cardinals’ rotation after the teamwide coronavirus outbreak decimated their pitching staff. Oviedo wasn’t quite ready and got hit hard. He also had a stint on the injured list after being exposed to someone who tested positive for Covid-19.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: The 6-foot-6 Oviedo has long arms, excellent extension and two above-average to plus pitches. His fastball sits at 94-95 mph and has touched 98, and his slider sits in the mid-80s with bite to draw swings and misses. Oviedo is a long-limbed pitcher still learning to harness his body and has below-average command and control. The result was his fastball got too much of the plate and he often fell behind hitters, rendering him unable to bury his slider as a chase pitch in strikeout situations. Oviedo’s average curveball with 11-to-5 shape proved better than expected in the majors. His changeup shows deception and drop but is inconsistent.
  
  THE FUTURE: Oviedo is still developing and has a chance to be a back-of-the-rotation starter. He’ll return to the minors in 2021 and could re-emerge in the majors at some point during the year.
• December, 2020 Scouting Report
  Fastball: 60. Slider: 55. Changeup: 45. Curveball: 50. Control: 40.
  
  TRACK RECORD: Oviedo had an excellent spring training and was ticketed for the alternate training site, but he was forced into emergency duty in the Cardinals’ rotation after the teamwide coronavirus outbreak decimated their pitching staff. Oviedo wasn’t quite ready and got hit hard. He also had a stint on the injured list after being exposed to someone who tested positive for Covid-19.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: The 6-foot-6 Oviedo has long arms, excellent extension and two above-average to plus pitches. His fastball sits at 94-95 mph and has touched 98, and his slider sits in the mid-80s with bite to draw swings and misses. Oviedo is a long-limbed pitcher still learning to harness his body and has below-average command and control. The result was his fastball got too much of the plate and he often fell behind hitters, rendering him unable to bury his slider as a chase pitch in strikeout situations. Oviedo’s average curveball with 11-to-5 shape proved better than expected in the majors. His changeup shows deception and drop but is inconsistent.
  
  THE FUTURE: Oviedo is still developing and has a chance to be a back-of-the-rotation starter. He’ll return to the minors in 2021 and could re-emerge in the majors at some point during the year.
• July, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: The towering Oviedo has been a frustrating blend of big stuff and poor control since he signed with the Cardinals for $1.9 million out of Cuba in 2016. He reached Double-A Springfield as a 21-year-old in 2019 and led the system with 163 strikeouts, but he also led it with 76 walks.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Oviedo stands an imposing 6-foot-6 with long limbs that are both a blessing and a curse. He generates easy velocity on a 94-98 mph fastball that plays up with extension out of his large frame, making it a potential plus pitch. He can get his average curveball over for a strike and put hitters away with a tilting, snapping slider that earns above-average to plus grades. He also teases an above-average changeup. Oviedo flashes a good delivery and shows feel to pitch, but his command and control vary wildly from start to start. His preparation and maturity are improving but still need work.
  
  THE FUTURE: Oviedo’s size, stuff and delivery are that of a starter, and evaluators are optimistic he will grow into his body and improve his control and consistency. He should see Triple-A Memphis in 2020.
• February, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: The towering Oviedo has been a frustrating blend of big stuff and poor control since he signed with the Cardinals for $1.9 million out of Cuba in 2016. He reached Double-A Springfield as a 21-year-old in 2019 and led the system with 163 strikeouts, but he also led it with 76 walks.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Oviedo stands an imposing 6-foot-6 with long limbs that are both a blessing and a curse. He generates easy velocity on a 94-98 mph fastball that plays up with extension out of his large frame, making it a potential plus pitch. He can get his average curveball over for a strike and puts hitters away with a tilting, snapping slider that earns above-average to plus grades. He also teases an above-average changeup. Oviedo flashes a good delivery and shows feel to pitch, but his command and control vary wildly from start to start. His preparation and maturity are improving but still need work.
  
  THE FUTURE: Oviedo's size, stuff and delivery are that of a starter, and evaluators are optimistic he will grow into his body and improve his control and consistency. He should see Triple-A Memphis in 2020.