Chris Reed

Organization Prospect Rankings

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  Ranked Los Angeles Dodgers #10 prospect in 2015
  Reed was a closer at Stanford, but the Dodgers immediately made him a starter after making him a first-round pick in 2011. The Dodgers were split on whether to keep him in the rotation or move him to the bullpen in 2014, but the decision to keep him as a starter helped his secondary pitches develop. Reed is a good athlete who attacks hitters from a three-quarters arm slot with a sinking 90-94 mph two-seamer that makes him a groundball pitcher. He found a more consistent arm slot with his low-80s slider in 2014 to give him a weapon against lefties, earning average to solid-average grades on the pitch. He threw his changeup more frequently to righthanded hitters in 2014, giving him a chance for a third average pitch. He's not wild, but his command and control both need to improve. The Dodgers would like to keep Reed as a starter, but with a stacked rotation, the easiest path to the big leagues could be through the bullpen. He will return to Triple-A, with a chance to be a back-end starter or late-inning reliever.
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  Ranked Los Angeles Dodgers #8 prospect in 2014
  Reed made one start at Stanford but shined as the Cardinal closer in 2011, motivating the Dodgers to draft him with the No. 16 pick in the 2011 draft. After signing for $1.589 million, Reed made the conversion to starter. Blister problems slowed him in 2012, but he reached Double-A Chattanooga that season and returned there for 2013. Reed is one of the most prolific groundball pitchers in the minors, with a 2.2 groundout/airout ratio in 2013 that ranked 12th among ERA qualifiers. He throws 89-95 mph with heavy sink and run on his two-seamer. He doesn't miss many bats because he lacks a putaway pitch. Coming into the year, Reed's slider was his most advanced secondary pitch, but now scouts are mixed. It has hard downward break when it's on and can be an average pitch. His changeup improved, and its late sink contributes to his groundball tendencies. It flashes average when he maintains his arm speed. His control still needs to improve, especially since he's going to rely more on hitting his spots and working down in the zone rather than blowing hitters away. Through the first two innings of his outings, Reed had a 2.52 ERA, but his performance deteriorated once he got deeper into games. The Dodgers will likely continue to develop Reed as a starter, but his future may be as a groundball-oriented reliever, with a chance to make his big league debut in 2014 after a stop at Triple-A.
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  Ranked Los Angeles Dodgers #6 prospect in 2013
  Though he grew up in California, Reed was born in London and represented Great Britain in the 2012 Futures Game and in a World Baseball Classic qualifier in September. A reliever throughout his career at Stanford, he converted to a starter after signing for $1,589,000 as the 16th overall pick in 2011. Blister problems plagued him in his first full pro season, but he did reach Double-A. Reed has better raw stuff than 2010 first-rounder Zach Lee, his teammate at two stops last year, but he lacks Lee's command. Reed's fastball operates at 92-96 mph with heavy sink, and he complements it with a devastating spike slider that's hard with late movement when he has it working. The slider was the culprit behind his blister problems, however, and they remain a concern going forward. Reed's changeup looks good in flashes but remains a work in progress. His command has to improve, and Los Angeles wants him to stay more upright in his delivery, which should help him stay behind the ball better. The Dodgers will loosen the reins on Reed in 2013. He could reach the majors quickly if he went back to the bullpen, but Los Angeles will continue developing him as a potential No. 3 starter. He'll head back for more fine-tuning at Chattanooga to open the season.
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  Ranked Los Angeles Dodgers #5 prospect in 2012
  After splurging on Zach Lee in 2010, the cash-strapped Dodgers were limited financially in the first round. They took Reed, who posted a 1.23 ERA as Stanford's closer in the spring, with the 16th overall pick. They signed him for $1.589 million, slightly above MLB's slot recommendation, and plan on developing him as a starter. Though Reed made only one start in three seasons at Stanford, he has the repertoire to work in a big league rotation. His fastball ranges from 89-96 mph, with tail and sink on his two-seamer and late boring action on his four-seamer. He throws a late-breaking slider at 85-86, and while it's often a plus pitch is also can get slurvy. He has good feel for a changeup that has action similar to his two-seamer's. Reed earns high marks for his competitiveness and intelligence. Los Angeles was encouraged by how well he repeated his delivery and held his velocity for five innings during a playoff start at Rancho Cucamonga. The Dodgers agreed to allow Reed to return to Stanford over the winter to finish his degree. When he gets back, he'll open his first full pro season back in high Class A. It remains to be seen how his arm will respond to the increased workload, but the ingredients are there for him to move quickly with the ceiling of a No. 2 starter.

Minor League Top Prospects

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  Ranked Southern League #14 prospect in 2014
  A Dodgers first-round pick from Stanford in 2011, Reed logged 310 innings in parts of three seasons at Chattanooga before finally getting over the hump and advancing to Triple-A Albuquerque in early August. Despite his slow progress, he's an athletic, three-pitch lefthander with a slider that SL managers singled out as the best breaking pitch in the league in 2014. Reed worked almost exclusively as a reliever in college, but he shows good feel for his secondary stuff and profiles as a starter despite just solid-average fastball velocity in the low 90s. SL batters struggled to square up his fastball, hitting just .226, and he excels at keeping the ball on the ground. Reed's low-80s slider more consistently showed sharp downward break in 2014, helping him notch the third-highest strikeout rate (7.6 per nine innings) among league starters. His changeup also plays as average, though he'll need to tighten his control to reach his ceiling as mid-rotation starter.

• December, 2012 Scouting Report
  Background: Though he grew up in California, Reed was born in London and represented Great Britain in the 2012 Futures Game and in a World Baseball Classic qualifier in September. A reliever throughout his career at Stanford, he converted to a starter after signing for $1,589,000 as the 16th overall pick in 2011. Blister problems plagued him in his first full pro season, but he did reach Double-A. Scouting Report: Reed has better raw stuff than 2010 first-rounder Zach Lee, his teammate at two stops last year, but he lacks Lee's command. Reed's fastball operates at 92-96 mph with heavy sink, and he complements it with a devastating spike slider that's hard with late movement when he has it working. The slider was the culprit behind his blister problems, however, and they remain a concern going forward. Reed's changeup looks good in flashes but remains a work in progress. His command has to improve, and Los Angeles wants him to stay more upright in his delivery, which should help him stay behind the ball better. The Future: The Dodgers will loosen the reins on Reed in 2013. He could reach the majors quickly if he went back to the bullpen, but Los Angeles will continue developing him as a potential No. 3 starter. He'll head back for more fine-tuning at Double-A to open the season.
• December, 2011 Scouting Report
  Background: After splurging on Zach Lee in 2010, the cash-strapped Dodgers were limited financially in the first round last year. They took Reed, who posted a 1.23 ERA as Stanford's closer in the spring, with the 16th overall pick. Reed signed three days before the deadline for $1.589 million, slightly above MLB's slot recommendation, and Los Angeles plans on developing him as a starter. Scouting Report: Though Reed made only one start in three seasons at Stanford, he has the repertoire to work in a big league rotation. His fastball ranges from 89-96 mph, with tail and sink on his two-seamer and late boring action on his four-seamer. He throws a late-breaking slider at 85-86, and while it's often a plus pitch is also can get slurvy. He has good feel for a changeup that has action similar to his two-seamer. Reed earns high marks for his competitiveness and intelligence. Los Angeles was encouraged by how well he repeated his delivery and held his velocity for five innings during a playoff start at Rancho Cucamonga. The Future: The Dodgers agreed to allow Reed to return to Stanford over the winter to finish his degree. When he gets back, he'll open his first full pro season back in high Class A. It remains to be seen how his arm will respond to the increased workload, but the ingredients are there for him to move quickly with the ceiling of a No. 2 starter.