Braden Olthoff Stats & Scouting Report

IP	125
ERA	4.392
WHIP	1.304
BB/9	2.664
SO/9	7.128

Full name Braden Richard Olthoff
Born 03/12/1999 in Oceanside, CA
Profile Ht.: 6'4" / Wt.: 241 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School Tulane
Drafted in the 9th round (261st overall) by the Los Angeles Angels in 2021 (signed for $122,500).

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A transfer from Palomar (Calif.) JC, Olthoff went 4-0, 0.32 with 47 strikeouts in 28 innings with just 12 hits and three walks in the abbreviated 2020 season. Olthoff couldn’t match that performance in 2021, but he posted a respectable 6-3, 3.78 mark as Tulane’s Friday starter. He struggled to maintain his stuff as the season wore on and his ERA rose by more than a run in his final four starts. Olthoff was sitting 87-90 mph in late-season starts, down from the 90-92 mph with which he began the season. His fastball has sink and run, especially when he’s throwing it down in the zone arm side. It pairs extremely well with his frisbee of a big-breaking slider. Olthoff loves to throw plus 78-81 mph sliders that break just off the plate, tantalizing hitters who think they are going to yank a hanging breaking ball, only to find that the pitch’s late break makes it nearly unhittable. Olthoff can pitch on the edges thanks to some of the best control in the draft class—he walked 1.27 batters per nine innings in 2021. Olthoff has an average changeup that he tries to pair with his fastball against lefties. He often seems like a throwback to a different time. In an era where pitchers try to explode off the mound, Olthoff takes a simple step, seemingly barely using his lower half. He eats innings and is durable. He’s likely going to need to add velocity to have long-term pro success, but if he does, his excellent feel and understanding of how his pitches play off of each other could make him a valuable starter.

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Draft Prospects

A transfer from Palomar (Calif.) JC, Olthoff went 4-0, 0.32 with 47 strikeouts in 28 innings with just 12 hits and three walks in the abbreviated 2020 season. Olthoff couldn’t match that performance in 2021, but he posted a respectable 6-3, 3.78 mark as Tulane’s Friday starter. He struggled to maintain his stuff as the season wore on and his ERA rose by more than a run in his final four starts. Olthoff was sitting 87-90 mph in late-season starts, down from the 90-92 mph with which he began the season. His fastball has sink and run, especially when he’s throwing it down in the zone arm side. It pairs extremely well with his frisbee of a big-breaking slider. Olthoff loves to throw plus 78-81 mph sliders that break just off the plate, tantalizing hitters who think they are going to yank a hanging breaking ball, only to find that the pitch’s late break makes it nearly unhittable. Olthoff can pitch on the edges thanks to some of the best control in the draft class—he walked 1.27 batters per nine innings in 2021. Olthoff has an average changeup that he tries to pair with his fastball against lefties. He often seems like a throwback to a different time. In an era where pitchers try to explode off the mound, Olthoff takes a simple step, seemingly barely using his lower half. He eats innings and is durable. He’s likely going to need to add velocity to have long-term pro success, but if he does, his excellent feel and understanding of how his pitches play off of each other could make him a valuable starter.
Like many kids, Olthoff dreamed of being a Division I baseball player, but heading into his senior year in high school, he realized his bat wasn’t going to be enough to take him there. He started pitching as a senior and quickly found success thanks to solid command and control, even if he generally sat around 85 mph. Palomar (Calif.) JC liked his feel for pitching and projectable frame. Olthoff was effective in two seasons at Palomar and earned the Friday starter job for Tulane during fall ball. He dominated in his four 2020 starts, going 4-0, 0.32 with a 47-3 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His 47 strikeouts were third best in Division I baseball and his 0.54 WHIP was sixth-best. Olthoff threw the first six innings of a no-hitter against Middle Tennessee. Olthoff throws four pitches that are all average or better, but it’s his plus command and control that is most notable. Olthoff has not allowed a home run in 135 college innings. His above-average changeup, a pitch he didn’t really trust until 2019, has emerged as his best weapon. He sits 90-92 mph but can brush 93-94. He also picked up a slider last year, which has become an average offering as well and he also throws an average curveball. Olthoff was barely on teams’ radars before the season began, so he’ll be a tough evaluation for teams who have very little track record with him and have not extensively scouted him. But his stuff is solid, his command is notable and his results are hard to argue with.